WORK to repair the exterior of St Alkmund's church will begin later this month.

Thanks to a legacy of John Heatley, a programme of work will start on the exterior of the church, with scaffolding starting to go up on Monday, September 16.

The main repairs focus on replacement of damaged sandstone on the walls and around the windows.

Steve Welsh, the studio principal from architect’s firm Buttress, said: "The current or forthcoming work on the church will see the replacement and repair of stones that have been adversely affected by natural weathering processes that occur with some of the softer sandstones.

"A look around the building shows that many stones have been replaced at various times through its history.

"The church is built from a local red sandstone and has a cream coloured stone used for the architectural details such as window surrounds, cornice and plinth courses and quoin stones.

"The current repairs will ensure that the correct colour stone is used and as part of the work, the cornice will be protected with lead to prevent moisture ingress.

"Minor repairs will also be carried out to ensure the windows are watertight."