Two years to the day, following the devastation of one of the most important and historic churches in the region, specialist contractors, Stephen Easten Building Limited, handed the building back to the Vicar of the Parish, Reverend John Sinclair.

St Michael & All Angels, Newburn, which dates from around 1070 AD, suffered a devastating fire in March 2006 leaving its roof and tower in risk of collapse.  At the height of the blaze, flames erupted from the top of the bell tower and the sight was described by onlookers as a ‘Roman Candle’.

Painstaking work to reinstate the Grade I Listed Norman church has been carried out by craftsment and specialist construction workers at Stephen Easten Building Limited, part of the north east’s largest indigenous construction firm, Esh Group.  Clearly delighted at the significant events of the day,

Rev Sinclair said:
‘On behalf of the Parish, I am delighted to be receiving the keys to our treasured Church today.  These two years have been turbulent; we have risen from, at the outset, initial desolation and uncertainty to complete pride and joy.  The planning, commitment and back-breaking effort that has been expended in restoring the Church to this point has been nothing short of phenomenal.  We are very grateful to the architects, the engineers and the craftsmen who have unstintingly given us their very best attention over such a prolonged period.’

The £2 million project to repair and restore the building was led by architect John Burns of Newcastle based Mackellar Architects. 

Commenting on the project, Mr Burns said:
‘This is a Grade 1 listed building; we have all invested our best efforts in ensuring that the salvageable, was saved, the repairable was restored and, where either was impossible, the original has been preserved by overlaying or replaced with the very best contemporary technology and design.  Our contractor, Stephen Easten Building Limited, has excelled.  The quality of their work, their skills and commitment, have been extraordinary; absolutely befitting a structure of this age and calibre.’

During the work dangerous dilapidations in the bell tower were discovered.  Robert Thorniley-Walker of Structural & Civil Consultants Limited of Northallerton led the engineer team which needed to develop a range of solutions to save the building from collapse.  The tower – probably constructed from stone acquired from the nearby Hadrian Roman Walls - suffered widespread cracking and structural distress during the fire and much of the timber work was destroyed.  

Commenting on the work, Mr Thorniley-Walker said:
‘Our initial priority was to stabilise the top of the bell tower after the heat and to remove the floors and bell frames.  We thought that the building had stood the test of time over the past thousand years, but while removing the charred remains of the nave roof, we discovered that the tower had almost collapsed in Victorian times.  It was strange to discover that a church used by eminent engineers such as George Stevenson, William Locke (father of Joseph Locke) and William Hedley had been messed around to the extent that significant cracks had opened up in the tower.’

One of the most spectacular aspects of the refurbishment work is the new nave roof which is constructed almost entirely of timber.  Both this and the new timber spire roof, atop the Norman bell tower, are examples of timber engineering which drew upon the specialist carpentry skills of Stephen Easten Building Limited’s craftsmen.  

‘The carpenters from Stephen Easten Building Limited relished the opportunity to exchange their nail guns for a chisel and to re-use their traditional, time-served joinery skills and techniques.  The lads have described this work as ‘the job of a lifetime’; I’ve told them they’re wrong – I predict that when more people see what they’ve achieved here they’ll be in demand for long into the future.’

Robin Purves, Managing Director of Stephen Easten Building Limited, went on:
‘We are very proud of the work we have carried out at St Michael & All Angels.  Many of the joinery team are time-served craftsmen and, for them, this is has been more of a hobby than a job, such is their enthusiasm to use their traditional skills.  Nevertheless it’s been tough.  The site itself prevents the use of modern cranes and lifting gear and so everything has been carried out manually – a good example being the new roof trusses, all of which have been formed and constructed on site.’

The full extent of the repair and restoration works carried out extend to:
• Reconstruction of main Church roof which was totally destroyed by the fire
• Reconstruction of 30% of the north transept roof which was also destroyed
• Stripping out the church pews for renovation
• Repair and reconstruction of oak doors and ornate timber stairs
• Re-building elements of the Norman stone tower that were destroyed by fire, including specialist structural strengthening works
• Cleaning and restoration of all ornamental stone work and timberwork
• New under floor heating system to church
• Reconstruction and oak re-facing pew banks • New 9m high church spire structure and copper/lead work
• Installation of new acoustic floors, bell peel and access stairs within the tower
• Masonry repairs to windows and inner lobby
• Replacement stained glass windows and protections
• Specialist organ repair and rebuilding.
• Plaster repairs throughout
• Full redecoration with lime wash
• New fire alarm system
• New electrical distribution system
• New public address system
• Structural timber repairs to bell tower screen
• New lighting scheme within the Church