There was a suggestion at a recent Congregational Board meeting that it would be  a good idea to let you all know about the work being planned by the Property Committee during 2010, particularly since last year’s expenditure was £3,404 and this year’s agreed budget is £22,909!

The first thing to say is that the Congregational Board has a duty to maintain the Church and Manse in good condition, both for current worship services and all other uses (Church) and for the benefit of current and future ministers (Manse). While Project ROCK has been looking at the Church specifically for some time, a number of items require attention at the Manse and the majority of these must be dealt with quickly to avoid even greater expense in the future. We have been advised several times in the past that Churches which fall vacant are more frequently being refused the opportunity to call another minister until the Manse is fit for purpose, a delay which would certainly not be desirable anywhere.

So – to the work needed on our Manse. The largest task, and the most expensive, will be the replacement of the Manse attic windows, which have now deteriorated beyond repair – particularly after the rigours of the last winter. We have budgeted £13,000 for the new windows but are confident that the actual figure will be lower. Our principal problem is that the Manse is listed and we must therefore replace ‘like for like’ in terms of the style of windows, and we may also be obliged to use wood, although North Lanarkshire Council are at least allowing us to put in for permission based on the alternative uPVC as well.

When Catriona came to Cumbernauld Old in February 1999 the Board had been obliged to refurbish the Manse kitchen and had no money for carpets. She therefore bought carpets for the Lounge, four bedrooms and the Hall, stairs and both landings. Over the past eleven years the Hall, stairs and landing carpet has had particularly heavy traffic and the Property Committee were asked to replace it (just ground to first floor). This has been budgeted at £2000 and several different options will of course be considered.

Both the East and West gable ends of the Manse are letting in water at top floor level, so a figure of £1000 has been budgeted to re-point the gables to ensure no further deterioration takes place. In addition, the external paintwork for the Manse needs to be completed in line with the Church of Scotland guidance for paintwork (external & internal) to be done on a regular cycle (another £500).

The Manse outbuildings need to be cleared of ivy (which is on the side of the roof facing the Nursing Home) and have a number of the slates replaced plus all holes in the walls sealed - just to make the buildings wind and watertight (a further £800).

All Manses must have a security system – a Presbytery / CofS requirement. We held off while the Manse was home to a couple of cats but now need to install a system as soon as possible. The budget for this is about £1000.

This work is over and above the regular maintenance (boiler servicing, gutter cleaning, electrical inspections and fire safety to name a few) for all of our buildings, which amounts to £2925 in itself and there are three small projects which ‘fell’ into 2010 from 2009 for very valid reasons, including weather, (Manse internal plastering and painting plus the re-grouting of the Church paths) totalling another £884.

Finally, the budget includes £500 to remove tree branches which are encroaching on the Manse itself and are threatening to bring down the telephone lines and £300 to repair the sandstone supports to the Manse front door, which deteriorated badly over the last winter.

That is why the 2010 budget figure is so large, but providing that we take these actions now, our expenditure in future years should not be as high, and regular maintenance / servicing will continue to keep the Manse and Church in good order.

The current plan is to replace the Manse attic windows during the summer and to carry out all other external works to the Manse over the same time period – weather permitting. The most obvious thing to notice at the Church is that the re-grouting of the paths is already well under way.

We shall keep you up-to-date with progress reports in future magazines.

Please do come out and help if we request work parties for e.g. painting the Laird’s Loft or cleaning up the Church or Manse grounds – it would be great to see a few new faces along with all our usual, very loyal helpers.

© Cumbernauld Old Parish Church of Scotland; Registered Scottish Charity SC000877