BAcRG Update October 2019

Update on The Daily Bread St Michael’s, Brampton Abbotts October 2019

It’s been an extremely busy six months since the essential repair works to St Michael and All Angels were completed in April 2019.

BAcRG Trustees and our Project Manager have been working hard on the second phase of The Daily Bread to bring this important historic building back into community use and to provide it with a long term sustainable future, to be able to keep it in good repair for generations to come.

Since April we have:

• Held a community celebration and open day on 30th May where more than 120 people came along to enjoy the building and join in various activities throughout the day and evening
• Attended and presented to the Annual Parish Meeting
• Hosted a number of fundraising events including Sausages & Cider at the Old Rectory; and at the church Whispering Across Centuries art project and exhibition; Village Show where we welcomed 97 entries across categories ranging from vegetables to cakes; preserves to photos from all ages; an afternoon of Poems and Puddings in the Pews; and a musical evening featuring our own local choir The Bramptones. We’ve raised £2,600+ this summer! Thank you for your support!

We’ve also…

• Opened our doors as part of the national Heritage Open Days initiative
• Welcomed the first service to be held at St Michael’s for more than 10 years, celebrating the feast of St Michael at the end of September
• Produced a variety of heritage information in various formats including leaflets, film, web content and interpretation paddles
• Received pre-application advice from Herefordshire Council
• Secured guidance from Historic England and the Conservation Officer to help finalise the re-ordering proposals for the building to reflect its historic significance
• Commissioned highway and transport planning consultants to undertake the necessary traffic surveys as part of our Change of Use planning application 
• Commissioned further Ecology surveys and studies to ensure our proposals have minimal impact on local wildlife and biodiversity
• Worked closely with RRA Architects to finalise our planning application
• Continued to work in partnership with the Diocese of Hereford and Church Commissioners on a community asset transfer and long lease of the building
• Agreed a programme of church services and supported the PCC to develop a Churchyard Management Plan, including securing Listing for the Lychgate to enable funding bids
• Commenced discussions with the PCC on securing a long lease on the carpark on similar terms to the building head lease with the Diocese of Hereford
• Held meetings with nearest neighbours to develop a Community Code of Conduct
• Retained the interest of an artisan baker who is committed to delivering the Daily Bread with us in 2020

So what happens now? What is The Daily Bread?

BAcRG submitted a planning application for Change of Use and Listed Building consent a few days ago. You can see the detail of the planning application by visiting the local authority planning portal.

The next phase of The Daily Bread is to re-order the inside of the church to make it more usable and accessible for all. We propose to install much needed services and facilities, such as mains water, a toilet, a kitchenette, storage space. We are requesting permission to remove and re-use the pews to open up the Nave and to make it a more flexible and community friendly space.

The Chancel will remain almost the same as now, with only minor alterations to the choir stalls, retaining it as a sacred space with all the history it holds. The Vestry will be converted into space for the artisan bakery with the necessary services, ventilation and hygienic floors and walls.

The budget cost for the next phase of works is approximately £250k including VAT and fees. BAcRG is now actively seeking funding to deliver the project subject to agreeing lease terms for the building and the car park and securing planning permission.

We hope that by this time next year The Daily Bread at St Michael’s will be up and running.

Some Frequently Asked Questions

What and Who is BAcRG?

Brampton Abbotts Church Regeneration Group (BAcRG) was set up in 2012 following the decision by the Church Commissioners to close St Michael’s and All Angels as a parish church.

Local people came together to try to save the historic building and to find a new sustainable use. BAcRG CIO registered as a charity in 2018 and is tasked with taking forward the plans for the building on behalf of the local community. Current BAcRG Trustees are:
Stuart Fraser (Chairman); Tom McCarthy; Jo Pilkington; Oliver Marshall; Jan Fraser; Sue Marshall. All Trustees live and/or work in the village.

Will the church be a place of worship again?

Yes, but St Michaels will not re-open as a Parish Church, the decision to close the church was made by the Church Commissioners in 2011. However, the Bishop of Hereford has given permission for six church services a year to be held at St Michael’s and BAcRG and the PCC are working together to look at hosting a range of community services in the church throughout the year.

Will the bakery result in more traffic, light pollution, noise and smells in the village?

Brampton Abbotts is a rural living village. We do not anticipate that the bakery will impact negatively on village life. To be sustainable we hope to attract visitors to the church, the bakery and the pop up café but not in numbers that will have adverse consequences on daily life.

The size of the building will limit the scale of production and numbers of people accommodated. The bakery will be staffed by a maximum of three people at any one time. Smells will be minimal and contained within self venting ovens and ventilation systems. Baking is not a noisy process so there will be minimal noise and the church walls are very thick.

Traffic movements at unsociable and peak hours of the day will be minimal and managed by public opening hours during term times. On a daily basis the existing car park should be sufficient with overflow arrangements put in place for any larger occasional events.

Low level path lighting will be installed in line with Ecology recommendations. It will be a warm yellow shade to avoid disturbance to surrounding wildlife and neighbouring properties.

How can we get involved or find out more?

We have an active social media and website presence so you can keep up to date on Facebook or here on www.thedailybread.org.uk.

We are always looking for more people to get involved so if you are interested contact the Project Manager on info@thedailybread.org.uk or any of the Trustees.

Thank you for taking the time to read this update.