Construction Development Alliance awards- Nominees required!

Construction Development Alliance awards- Nominees required!

It’s that time again when the Construction Development Alliance Award, those Young Persons in the Construction Industry.

Do you know someone who will make a great candidate for the awards?

The deadline is the 20th of April, 2023.

Send your nomination today…

Awards

Every two years, The Construction Development Alliance (CDA) host’s an awards evening to award five young construction individuals for their hard work and determination in the construction field.

If you know of an exceptional young construction individual, why not nominate them today?

 Guest host

Image result for charlie luxton

The guest host for this year’s event is Charlie Luxton, Architect and TV presenter of Building The Dream on More4; along with the award sponsors, Charlie will hand the award to the winner.

 Categories

The categories are:

  1. Overcoming Adversity
  2. Apprentice
  3. Construction Professional
  4. Young Construction Environmentalist
  5. Designer

Nomination Form

CDA Nomination Form Online

Local History – Rawtenstall – Whitaker Museum

Local History – Rawtenstall – Whitaker Museum

A Gift to the Children of Rawtenstall – Local Free Man Richard Whitaker bought and donated Oak Hill House and its grounds for the Children of Rawtenstall as a place of recreation and learning.
 
On the edge of Rawtenstall perched just off Haslingden road is a house and a beautiful garden park. Many know this place as Whitaker Park. We asked locals what comes to mind when they think about ‘The Whitaker’?
The common theme is the museum – that is found in the house. The people highlighted exhibitions such as the baby elephant, the snake and tiger, and the shrunken head. Only a few people know the story of how this home became a much-loved museum. In our research, it took time to get the history of this building. What we found was working people who were proud and still are of their heritage. We see this pride in the care given to the grounds and house.

What was the original purpose of the house?

In prime location to overlook the Working Mill at New Hall Hey; known to us today as the grade II listed building Hardman’s Mill. The 1840’s family home was built; originally standing on a 28acre park, which held cottages and farms. The Whitaker Park house was originally called Oakhill and was home for Major George Hardman (1794-1852) and his family. Oakhill had been a family home until Richard Whitaker bought the house and grounds in 1900, he wanted to create a museum and public park for the children of Rawtenstall. Mr Whitaker was born into poverty in 1829, one of thirteen he was working in Rawtenstall’s local mills at 6 years old. By the end of his career, he was a director of an Accrington company manufacturing mill machinery. The museum and public park where gifted to the children of Rawtenstall in 1902. Many Local mill owners gifted Items for the Museum and gardens.
When Richard Whitaker died in 1906 he had seen the growth of knowledge among the children of the needy. Richard not only Donated the Park and the Museum but also donated money for Almshouses, exhibitions, scholarships and allowances to the needy in the area.

What is it now?

From that first museum opening in 1902 by Richard Whitaker, the house has stayed as Richard had set out. Sadly, the house fell into disuse and in 2013 the Whitaker was brought back to life and transformed into the Rossendale Museum & Art Gallery. Under the leadership of the newly formed ‘Whitaker Group’, a journey began with the restoration and enhancement of this prized park.
The Whitaker Group are passionate that the aims of the museum remain true to its original 1902 declaration; to educate and enlighten the people of Rossendale, providing a focus for learning and cultural activity into the 21st Century.
The Whitaker house is now a privately owned business that runs the museum with a small café open Tuesday-Sunday 9.30am-5pm. The Whitaker Park is owned and maintained by Rossendale Borough Council. See what treasures the house has for you to learn from. Maybe enjoy a nice hot drink with a lovely view or a leisurely stroll around the park, the Whitaker is your place.

Learn More

To learn more about the local history and the traditional building works check out our Training courses. For More information please follow the links below. Public Art Collection North West: A history and Guide By Edward Morris – p.g. 153, Mill Guide, The Whitaker Official Website. Notes on the Hardman Family, Fishink blog.

Death of a beloved Queen

Queen Elizabeth II of The United Kingdom and the Common Wealth Nations

It was announced Thursday, 8th September 2022, that Queen Elizabeth II died in her Balmoral home. She had ruled over the United Kingdom, Northern Ireland and the Commonwealth for just over 70 Years.

Sad news not only for the Royal family but also for the people of the United Kingdom, Northern Ireland and the Commonwealth.

Our thoughts and prayers go out to all those mourning the loss of this remarkable woman.

Not many can talk about a time when she was not Queen, and whether you are a royalist or not, Queen Elizabeth put her stamp on everyone’s lives.

Thank you for the seventy years of service and all you sacrificed to take the heavy burden of being the Queen of a vast group of people on your shoulders.

Weavers Cottage

The Weaver’s Cottage is the building we will discuss in this article. It’s a building that to some seems out of place between a modern Health Hub and a converted cotton mill.

Have you ever wondered what the weaver’s cottage was?

Weavers Cottage Rawtenstall

The Cottage can be found on Bacup road between Ilex Mill and Rawtenstall’s Health Hub; this cottage would have been common during the time it was built.

Many people have seen this building but they don’t know anything about it or its history.

Some brief history
  • The ground floor would have been used as a lodging place for the workers.
  • The first and second floors would have been used as a workshop where large weaving looms would have been operated.
  • During the industrial revolution, it was split into four separate dwellings.
  • In the 1940’s the first murder in living memory recorded in Rossendale and one of the tenants of the cottage was the convicted murder.
  • Was used as a Police Box.
The Cottage is
  • Dated around the 18th century when English weaving was at its height.
  • A three-story Stone building
  • The first and second floors have six large windows.
  • Built with two large floors with an open plan layout for working.
  • South facing
  • Access to the working floors was at the rear of the building.

 What was the cottage originally used for?

The cottage name tells us that the main use was for Wool and/or silk weaving. Though known as the Weaver cottage, the main purpose of this building was the housing of the large loom machines, locally it could have been known as the loom shop.

Weaving was a trade common among the working people. Therefore the cottage work area’s were available to all the weavers in the province.

It seems like the designer had taken in the risks of this profession when they had planned this building. A good building design is necessary for specialised work.

You can see this in the used of windows so that the natural lighting would reduce the number of candles needed in the room, this will minimise the risk of possible fire. A fire was a major worry in the weaving business, just one spark could lose your livelihood and your home.

Some weavers employed their own or local children to assist with the weaving process as children could easily reach more difficult areas on the loom.

Until the introduction of the powered loom, this cottage would have been in constant use.

At the height of the industrial revolution, work in the mills was encouraged. With mills able to produce large quantities of fabric it became harder for those who worked in these cottages to earn a living.

As a result, the weaving profession began to be abandoned and more people began to work in the large cotton mills. Some of these mills can be found around Rawtenstall today, one is the Ilex mill next to the weavers cottage.

English weaving is a traditional skill among those in decline.

Resulting in the cottage workshop being left vacant, the large space was partitioned off to create homes. But, as more desirable homes were built, the weaver’s cottage again was empty.

Just outside The weavers cottage was the location of the first murder in Rossendale’s living history. The shocking murder of Nancy Chadwick in 1948. Find out more Click here.

Rawtenstall illex mill and weavers cottageWhat is it now?

In the 1970’s the area was under an urban renewal.

This council approved arrangement resulted in several old buildings being demolished.

The Rawtenstall Civics Society saved the cottage from being completely demolished. Unfortunately, the rear sloped roof was lost.

The civic society was able to restore the cottage to as much of its original format. Now using it as a heritage centre for the local area.

The cottage became a grade II listed building registered on the 16th October 1970. This gives the weavers cottage the status of a building of national importance and special interest.

Learn More
To find out more visit The Rossendale Civic Trust’s website. If you would like to learn more about historic building why don’t you check out our course page and see what we can do for you! There is a video provided by the Rossendale civic trust marking the history of the weavers’ cottage.
How to have a cost effective heritage refurb?

How to have a cost effective heritage refurb?

Excited to buy a listed building, well hold on right there… Let’s stop and count the cost.

When buying a heritage building it can seem like a great investment yet it can be a drain on your purse if you’re not careful.

There are so many stories where people have gone and bought an old run down house, mill, or stables and they have transformed it back to it prime or in some cases better.

Hearing these stories it gives us a warm glow and a desire to do the same, but what we don’t hear is the cost of the projects, the mistakes that knock costing into the rafters.

So What about the cost? When you own a heritage building you better have money to burn. Yes, that’s right; it’s not a cheap thing owning an old building.

One homeowner found out the hard way.

A real costly experience

Renovating his heritage house a Gentleman went in search of a professional. The homeowner had not realised the magnitude of the skilled work that was needed to restore his listed home but was determined to save cost and do the prep work himself.

So what did the homeowner do…?

Well, he hired… His nephew… Yes, that’s right his nephew was hired to do the prep works.

The young lad had no skills in modern or traditional building work. So you can just imagine what disasters would befall.

For a while, all seemed to go well.

Dutifully the nephew got to work removing the rouble, upon doing this the young lad discovered plaster snot on the back of the wooden slats.

Now if you know anything about lath and plaster, you will know this is not a good idea. Why? let go on with the story.

So the nephew proud of his hard day’s graft, called his uncle to look at this now snot free cavity; can you imagine the joy on the homeowners face?

Happy with this prep work, the homeowner then called in the professional.  

Call in the Professional

After seeing the snot free cavity the professional was in utter shock that the ceiling had not collapsed.

The plaster that had dripped over the back of the lath was a support keeping the plaster to the wall. And the nephew didn’t just do a small section; No, he did the whole ceiling.

Now, what could this homeowner do?

Thankfully the builder knew the skills to fix this problem.

Stabilising the ceiling required metal pins to be inserted every 30 meters.

This resulted in more expense than the original quotation.

The ceiling would never be as strong as it had once been but the homeowner can now rest soundly knowing the plaster would not crumble and collapse on him.

Skill = Quality

Many think they are saving money doing simple works themselves without the correct training but when it comes to traditionally built structures heritage skills and experience are a must.

For these skills and materials, they come at a cost.

Quality doesn’t come cheap, but it is cheaper than having to fix what didn’t need doing. A hard lesson to learn but it is all worth it in the end.

Now if you own a heritage building, work in the building industry or just interested in old buildings, take note there are courses you can attend to widen your skills. Learn to maintain Lath and Plaster, Understand lime and how to use it, or just basic heritage maintenance skills.

You can develop the skills to maintain your own heritage building.

Contractors should be check for training in the traditional skills.

Knowing you have the right people on the job will help you feel in control of your renovation.

And not end up with the possibility of your wall collapsing in.

More information

If you are interested in learning more about tradition construction skill why not check out our courses page and see what is available for you. If you cant find anything then email us and see what we can do for you. The story was shared by a member of the Traditional Plasters Guide who was the professional on the job.