COSY CROFTY (update 1)

Posted: Thu, 20 Jun 2019

As I guess everyone knows by now, we have been very fortunate in obtaining a large grant from Veolia Environmental Trust to carry out energy conservation work that will make Croft House a more warm, comfortable and pleasant pace for all our user groups and visitors. As we draw nearer to beginning the work, we will issue a series of Bulletins to keep everyone informed about what’s going on and, hopefully, when.

We will have a total of four external contractors working on the building at various times through the summer. We have tried to arrange that the work is done with the minimum of disruption to those user groups who work through the summer but, inevitably, there will be occasions when this cannot be avoided and we ask your forbearance at those times.

By the end of the project we will have installed :

  • 31 central-heating radiators in 4 different control zones
  • 43 double-glazed window units
  • 70 + LED lighting units.

First on site will be Paul Copley Electrical who are installing the new lighting for us. Beginning at the end of June, they will be working gradually through the building, room-by-room probably beginning with toilets, kitchen and reception areas. The vast majority of light switches will remain the same but you will soon notice the vast difference LED lighting makes.

Once we have been connected to an upgraded gas supply, Byfield Heating Limited will move in from 15th July to put in the new central heating system. This is planned to take a little over two weeks and will probably be the most disruptive area of work as pipework has to be laid and new heating units installed. During the installation of the new supply there will be no gas available to the kitchen cooker – apologies – we will give as much notice as we can and try to keep this as short as possible.

Last to move onto site will be Sheffield Window Centre who will erect a scaffolding around three sides of the building in order to install the new windows – mostly from outside the building. The most outstanding feature you will notice will be the sixteen large windows in Croft Hall on the first floor which are being opened up for the first time in over forty years to flood that space with natural light. This work is timed to start around the beginning of August and, again, will take a little over two weeks.

We will need some voluntary help to clear spaces for the contractors to work and to clean up and re-decorate areas that need it after the work is completed. Watch this space or contact the office for details.

We will be taking advantage of the window contractor’s scaffolding for Greg Owens Roofing Specialists to carry out some essential repairs to the main roof of the building. This is not part of the grant-funded project but it seemed an opportune time to carry out some preventative maintenance.

The overall result will give good old Croft House a new lease of life, ready to provide accommodation, facilities and services to community and voluntary organisations for another 120 years.