St Peter's Church Village Clock Appeal
The Ticking Heart Of
Langford Budville
St Peter's church is a much loved and significant landmark in the village of Langford Budville which has hosted centuries of special occasions. Whilst they may not necessarily be members of the congregation, there are plenty of friends of St Peter's in our community who support the upkeep of this treasured place. We are currently focused on getting the village clock running.
St Peter’s Church clock was constructed by Gillet & Bland Steam Clocks of Croydon in 1881 and has been the heartbeat of Langford Budville for generations, steadily counting the hours from the Victorian era, through two world wars, universal suffrage, the creation of the Welfare State and NHS, the end of Empire, Windrush, the Swinging Sixties, discontent, globalization, multiculturalism, optimism, umpteen world cups, Austerity, and Brexit. Times change, but the steady ticking of the clock was maintained, with St Peters ringing out the hours of our lives. Until it stopped.
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The original clock was wound every six days, ringing the hours as well as chiming gently on the quarter hours. The last manual winder, we believe, was the church warden Chris Fox, who lived across the road from St Peters at Croxhall. Some time in the 1960s it was decided to use what was cutting edge electronic equipment of the time to automate the winding. During the conversion to this autowind system a significant number of original components were removed and taken away - enough to make restoration to the original condition very, very difficult. We would need to recast the missing components or find a scrapped Victorian church clock of this kind with reliable spare parts.
In the 80s the bell frame was found to be unsafe to support the bells. As it is a Tudor relic, it was decided that it must stay within the building and so the bells were moved down the tower, below the clock. This required further re-engineering of the mechanical system as well as significantly reducing the effective volume of the bells.
The autowind ran for several decades, continuing to be the heartbeat of the village for the first twenty years of the 21st Century, thanks to the consistent maintenance of Tim Wyatt and the care of the parish’s church council. Sadly, during the late 20teens it began to run intermittently and despite best efforts it gave its last gasp, somewhat poignantly, during the Covid 19 epidemic.
Now, having sat still and silent for five years, it is time to tick again!
We are working to raise £25,000 for the restoration of this community treasure. This is a huge amount of money in these cash-strapped times but we hope that through generous people giving what they can, and by relentlessly applying to charitable funds, we can raise the money together. It’s not just a magnificent local heirloom but it’s also a gently powerful agent of community cohesion. Just as the Bow Bells make Cockneys, the peels of St Peter's make Buddies! [note to self - need to work on that epithet]
Email Friends.of.St.Peter1509@gmail.com to help. Click below to donate.
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St Peter's Church
There are records of a church in Langford Budville at the beginning of the 13th century but the present structure dates from the early 1500s (first mention 1509). A detailed history of the church, written by M.B.McDermott, can be downloaded below. It includes references to architectural changes, the mysterious Langford Needle, the original "St Peter's Ale" and the annual tradition of "Clipping The Tower", as well as the perennial issue of keeping a rector in residence!
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Whilst asset rich, the Church of England has to maintain some 16,000 churches across the country, including 43 cathedrals. The majority of these are listed buildings and their upkeep is maintained mostly by donations from the congregation (approximately 45% of Grade One listed buildings in England are churches)! As congregations decline across the nation it is becoming harder to keep these historic structures in good repair. Many of us, although not churchgoers, enjoy and value having such a special building at the heart of our community for weddings, baptisms and funerals, or perhaps simply as a place of peace and reflection to rest in whilst out on a long walk.
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Recognising the church as a cultural treasure at the centre of our community, friends of St Peter's have been working together to keep this landmark building open and welcoming to all. Recently we have supported the funding of the restoration of the historic church organ, and we are currently hoping to raise enough money to return the famous golden cockerel to the top of the tower as well as repairing the original Victorian clock. The clock, built in 1881 at Gillet & Brand's Steam Clock Factory in Croydon, London, ticked last in 2020, after years of care by a few parishioners. Its quarter hourly dongs are a greatly missed aspect of village life and something that many locals used to set their tea breaks by! There's more information here.
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We are especially keen on mini personal statements regarding the impact of the church, the organ, the clock, and the bells in the lives of locals. These could be as short as a sentence and would be useful in any applications for restoration funds that we apply for. Send these messages of support to Friends.of.St.Peter1509@gmail.com
The Organ Is Restored!
Our church organ needed more than TLC! It needed a once in a century restoration to avoid collapse...
The organ was built in 1875 by Forster & Andrews in Hull (which firm closed in 1956). Their organs of this period are highly regarded as to the quality of the instruments - to be still in use in 2024 reflects this. It has needed very little work over the years (an asbestos blower was replaced around ten years ago) and it is deemed to be a lovely little organ to play.
After a minor but very necessary repair by Michael Farley, Organbuilders Ltd, who have looked after the organ for years and are recommended by John Young, it was revealed that much more attention was needed.
The whole sound board needed complete restoration.
This involved:
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dismantling the organ from the swell box down;
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removing the soundboard to the workshop for full restoration;
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flooding the bars with hot glue;
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repairing the pallets where corrosion has caused the wood to split;
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fitting new non-ferrous eyes and pull downs;
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all the stop action and pipework to be removed, cleaned and overhauled at the same time.
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Then the whole to be carefully reassembled, tuned and regulated.
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We are extremely relieved and pleased to have been able to raise the funds and we are grateful to all who generously supported us.
Now, with the organ restored, our focus can turn towards returning the lovely golden cockerel to its rightful place atop the tower after taking flight during Storm Darragh, and the fixing of the church clock and its chimes. Remaining funds from the organ repair will go towards the clock.​
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Thank you for your contribution!
St. Peter's PCC & Friends of St Peters
Langford Budville PCC Friends Account
Sort Code: 30-98-45
Acc: 41033068
Ref: Appeal
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Or by cheque labelled Appeal on the back, made out to Langford Budville PCC
and sent to Sarah Nutt , The Old Chapel, Langford Budville, TA21 0RE
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Questions or comments to the Friends of St Peters: Friends.of.St.Peter1509@gmail.com
or the Parochial Church Council: Croxhall@gmail.com
