logo
Urgent repairs under way at 15th Century Oxburgh Hall in Norfolk

Urgent repairs under way at 15th Century Oxburgh Hall in Norfolk

BBC News19-06-2025
An urgent conservation project is under way to preserve a manor house built more than 500 years ago.Water levels in the moat at Oxburgh Hall, near Swaffham in Norfolk, became unusually low due to leaks last year and then a sinkhole appeared on a lawn.A watertight enclosure called a cofferdam has been installed to allow contractors to repair the moat as part of work costing £196,000.Donna Baldwin from the National Trust said it was a "delicate balancing act" to keep water levels high enough to protect the building's walls without flooding the gardens.
"If the water drops too low, the brickwork is exposed, which has an impact on the structural integrity of the hall itself," she said.
Workers are expected to remain at the site until the end of June and will also repair the sluice and culverts.The moat is fed via an underground channel from the River Gadder, with culverts allowing water in and out. The sluice gate controls the amount of water draining out of the moat and back to the Gadder. The Oxburgh Estate is owned by the National Trust but has been the family home of the Bedingfelds for more than 500 years, and they still live in private apartments at the hall.
Follow Norfolk news on BBC Sounds, Facebook, Instagram and X.
Orange background

Try Our AI Features

Explore what Daily8 AI can do for you:

Comments

No comments yet...

Related Articles

RNLI rescues 19 migrants from English Channel after dinghy capsizes
RNLI rescues 19 migrants from English Channel after dinghy capsizes

The Independent

time21 hours ago

  • The Independent

RNLI rescues 19 migrants from English Channel after dinghy capsizes

Dramatic footage released by the Royal National Lifeboat Institution (RNLI) shows volunteers rescuing migrants from the English Channel after their small boat capsized in 2024. The never-before-seen footage, released on Tuesday, depicts the Dover RNLI crew responding to a mayday call when a dinghy with 19 individuals onboard sank. All of the migrants were successfully rescued from the water by the volunteers, who threw flotation devices and helped them onto the lifeboat. The RNLI reported responding to 114 separate crossing incidents in 2024, saving the lives of 58 migrants, including children. Watch the video in full above.

Maryport Christ Church window damage delays museum opening
Maryport Christ Church window damage delays museum opening

BBC News

time21 hours ago

  • BBC News

Maryport Christ Church window damage delays museum opening

Damage to the windows of a Grade II listed church have been blamed for yet another delay in its Church in Maryport, Cumbria, is undergoing major renovation to reopen as the town's Maritime was initially expected to finish in spring 2024, but Cumberland Council, which is behind the project, said the museum would now open in autumn authority said some of the building's windows were more damaged than initially thought, leading to delays in repairing and replacing them. "Our priority for Christ Church is to preserve and protect a building which is part of the fabric of Maryport and give it a long and successful future," said Mark Fryer, the Labour council's said working on old buildings was "never an exact science" and it was difficult to know what materials had been used in the initial construction and how they had been treated over time."While it is frustrating that the restoration has proved complicated, we are determined to get it right," he council said the issue did not affect the stained windows of the church, just those containing leaded Church is more than 150 years old and the local authority said the building had "suffered decades of deterioration" before it was bought in 2020. Follow BBC Cumbria on X, Facebook, Nextdoor and Instagram.

DOWNLOAD THE APP

Get Started Now: Download the App

Ready to dive into a world of global content with local flavor? Download Daily8 app today from your preferred app store and start exploring.
app-storeplay-store