The Gothic church in Lincolnshire, in England, is used as a home by its current owners. The restoration of the Grade II listed church has been carried out with great care and attention to detail, preserving the original stained glass windows, steeple and altar.
Within the building, the aim was to preserve the large, airy spaces, but it was of course necessary to separate the different living areas in order to create a residential function. The lower floor, with a floor area of around 100 square metres, is essentially a reception area, with a large reception, a living room and a kitchen. The upper level contains the bedrooms and other utility rooms. The converted church has a large garden with a picturesque view of the nearby village.
The main objective of the renovation was to make the church habitable in its original form, but in line with the needs of the 21st century. It is a very forward-looking solution to give such an unusual function to an abandoned church building that is still structurally usable. Given the huge potential for housing in abandoned buildings today, such innovative solutions should be considered instead of greenfield solutions. The owner is not only preserving a piece of the past, but also preserving the building in its almost original form, with appropriate use of materials and colours.
