NICK COX ARCHITECTS

Nick Cox Architects was established in 2006 and is based in north Oxfordshire. The practice also has offices in London and Frome, Somerset. The practice specialises in the repair and conservation of historic buildings and the design of new buildings in historic contexts.

Projects - Parkland Buildings

The Broughton Dovecote

Client: Private

Listing Status: Grade II

Grant Funding: A Defra grant has enabled the building to be repaired with the assistance of Natural England.

The Dovecote at North Newington is a Grade II Listed building, (approximately 300years old). The building is situated on the Broughton Estate at the south east edge of North Newington.

The project involved the conservation and repair of the existing internal and external walls and of the roof. Repairs were also undertaken to the existing roof structures, window and door. The works proposed were subject to an application for funding on the DEFRA Higher Level Stewardship Scheme for the repair and restoration of historic buildings. The works needed to be compliant with the DEFRA principle applied to historic building restorations.

The aim of the project was to conserve the fabric of the building, to repair the structure and to make the building envelope secure.

The external walls of the Dovecote were noted as being in a poor condition in certain places with vertical cracks, loss of pointing mortar, areas of hard cement pointing and some dislocation of the walling stones. The stone is a 'Hornton Stone', an Iron rich limestone known for its characteristic pattern of erosion and decay. The interior of the Dovecote comprises a series of nesting boxes rising to eaves level; there were stones missing and some evidence of earlier structural movement. It was apparent on inspection that the internal nesting boxes were constructed separately from the external walls and set within it rather than being fully built into the surrounding external walls.

Repairs were conceived in a manner to minimise any adverse impact upon the special character of the Listed Building. The works were confined to sensitive repairs which did not need Listed Building Consent. The scope and nature of the repairs being discussed and agreed with the Local Planning Authority. The works included repointing of walls, repairs to the roof structure, re-roofing with pegged stone slates with torching in the traditional manner and new joinery. The lantern structure above the roof was re-built.

BACK