Replacing the Lighting in St Mary's
Progress to Date - October 2025
By the time that you read this in early November, the majority of the new lights will have been installed in the north and south chapels, the north and south aisles, the nave and the west tower under the various ceilings. The rest will be installed in the first half of November and those in the aisles and nave, at least, will be switched on for Advent and Christmas.
Good progress has been made during September with the installation of the new lighting on the north side of the church, the north chapel and north aisle, and as I write, the installation of the south chapel lights is well underway and the work in the south aisle has started. During September, new cabling was installed in the south porch ready for the new lighting and the aim is to have all of the new lights at the church entrances installed and working before the contractors leave us for December.
Why, if the new lights are now fixed, aren’t we using them? Before they are switched on, the contractors will go up to the ceilings once again, when the lighting designer is present, to make sure that they are pointing in exactly the right direction and that they are focussed correctly. Focussing involves adjusting the fittings at ceiling level so that the light we see on the ground or in our pew is either a narrow spotlight or a broad “wash” of light. We will also have a temporary control unit on the welcome unit on the north side of the nave at the back of church before the end of November.
So far, there has been little need to string up some temporary lighting because Tom Flynn (TFE) and his team have left our existing lighting in place until the replacement lights are switched on. They will remove our current lighting when they go up to focus the new fittings. We do have temporary lighting in the clergy vestry and, as mentioned last month, at the west entrance and in the west tower. However, it is clear that we are only just in time with this project, all of the downlights in the nave on the north side (the left when facing the high altar) failed about 20 minutes before one of our July weddings and they haven’t worked since. The downlights on the south side of the nave have flickered on and off recently too!
In mid-October, we have Bakers of Danbury on site to help TFE run a new cable across the steps between the west tower and the west end of the nave. Bakers are the contractors who installed the servery, toilet, all the associated cupboards and welcome units back in 2017-18 and we are using them for all the “Building Works in Connection” with the lighting installation. This will be the first of a few visits from them. In due course, they will fit out the tall cupboards at the back of church, which now have some lighting control gear in them, once the rest of the control gear is in place. I will look to get the cupboard on the north side, used to store tables, back into use as soon as possible but this relies on fitting it out to ensure that the tables cannot lean on and damage the control gear. The tall cupboard on the south side, which is used by Tinies, will be ready for their return to the church, which will most likely be in early March 2026.
I mentioned earlier that TFE will leave us for December. The last day when they’ll be working inside the church will be on Thursday 27th November and they will take away all of their equipment under the blue tarpaulin and put the missing north aisle pews back before they leave. They’ll be back in very early January to work in the chancel and sanctuary but more about that next month.
Finally, I have sought to ensure that there are notices in the Grapevine and emails are sent to relevant persons when parts of the church will be inaccessible for a few days. PLEASE, PLEASE, PLEASE, do take notice of these and do not seek to enter an area which we have communicated as inaccessible. These warnings are being sent for your safety. If the contractors mistakenly drop a light fitting on you when you are below them, the result will be extremely serious. The notices are giving sufficient information to allow you to re-schedule your visit, please do so.
Steve Hasler
8th October 2025
Progress To Date and What’s Next - September 2025
Our lighting contractors started work on Monday 4th August and, although most of it isn’t visible, a lot of good progress has been made. What can be done before 15th September is restricted by Natural England due to our small bat roost and only from that Monday can Tom Flynn and his team start to work at ceiling level in the main body of the church. So the contractors are not on site for w/c 8th September as they have done all the can until the bats go!
(click on photos to enlarge)
At the time of writing, 5th September, the items completed include:
• Control panels installed in cupboards on the north and south side at the west end of the church – see photo. of the servery side cupboard which will be fitted out so that the tables can still be stored there.
• Cabling has been run across the organ loft from south to north. These will power the lights in the north chapel and north side of the chancel and sanctuary.
• Cabling run under the floor from the servery to the north side welcome desk.
• The lights in the clergy vestry have been removed and temporary lighting provided.
• New lights installed at the west entrance and below the west tower ceiling, see photo. The contractors were allowed to work at ceiling level in the west tower in August and September but not in the main body of the church……
• 90% of the new light fittings have been delivered and prepared for installation.
From 15th September, the work will move to the north aisle and north chapel and there will be two scaffold towers, like the one shown, in the church during the week. These will be stored away every weekend and while there’s work in the north chapel the statue of Mary will be boxed in and protected. The target is to complete the installation of the cabling and new lights in the north chapel by the end of Thursday 18th September and the north aisle by the end of the month. Any new lights will not be switched on until they are connected to the control panels which will be later in the project.
The plan for October and November is still much as I described in the August – September edition of the parish news. A focus on the south aisle and south chapel in October followed by the nave in November with the break for Christmas starting on Thursday 27th November.
Temporary light switch at west door. This switches on the new lights inside the west door to light the way in when it’s dark. This is temporary and, for now, the lights dim and go out briefly after 5 seconds before coming on fully and staying on.
Programme for October and November
•
First half of October
Fit new cabling and lights in south chapel
• Rest of October and November
Fit cabling and lights in nave
•
Late November
Liven up all new lights
These will be on simple on/off switches at this time
Connecting them to the new control panels will be in February 2026
•
From 27th November to 5th January
Break for Advent and Christmas
All equipment stored in the church at weekends will be removed for this period
What lights will we have as the work is being done?
For each area where work is being done:
• First activity will normally be to remove the existing cabling and light fittings
• Temporary lighting will be made available in this area before the first weekend after work has started
e.g., in the north aisle, there will be lights strung between the pillars which separate the aisle from the nave
In some areas, e.g., the north chapel, the existing lights will be left in place and used as temporary lighting but the on/off light switch will be moved
Rarely, the new lights will be used, e.g., inside the west entrance
• We will have adequate lighting!
Funding
In the last edition of the Parish News I confirmed that we had filled our funding gap. We were successful with 4 grant applications and withdrew the other two we had made once we had all the funding. The Church of England gave their maximum of £3,000 from a scheme which encourages churches to reduce their carbon footprint and we will use this to replace the lighting at all of the entrances to the church. Stansted Airport awarded a grant of £5,000 which will be used to pay for the supply of the light fittings for the area below the chancel steps which is used extensively in our services and by the community and performers during concerts and recitals. We also were awarded £6,500 from Friends of Essex Churches Trust and £15,000 from the Congregational and General Trust. Except for the CoE award, Trusts donate their grant on receipt of a paid invoice, however, as well as the £3,000 from the CoE we have also received the £20,000 matched funding that was offered via Essex Community Foundation. Your very generous donations have been matched as promised!
I updated the display in church at the start of September and will do so at the start of every month, do keep up-to-date by reading that and if you have any questions at any time, please do not hesitate to ask.
Steve Hasler
5th September 2025
Installation of Our Replacement Lighting Update - 3rd July 2025
When writing the update for the July edition of the Parish News, I reported that we had reduced our funding gap to £14,000 from £38,000. By the time that edition was published we had reached full funding and the editor helpfully added a Stop Press to note this. In addition to the amazing support from you all, we made 6 grant applications to Trusts and Foundations, 4 of which were successful. We also received an anonymous donation to fund the spotlights for the roof bosses in the nave and chancel, which are not lit at present, and which were an additional, optional item. The other optional item, lighting the statues in the south and north aisles can also now be progressed.
The outline of the programme for the installation is:
Start Date – Monday 4th August. Natural England have informed us that no work can be done at ceiling level except in the west tower until Monday 15th September, due to the maternity roost of bats in the church, they visit every summer.
Target completion date – Friday 13th March 2026
Break for Christmas – Thursday 27th November or Friday 5th December, depending on progress. The contractors will leave and take their equipment with them.
Storage of equipment – all of the new light fittings will be locked away in the boiler room until they are installed. The contractor’s mobile scaffold tower will be stored at weekends, covered with sheeting, in place of two pews against the north wall of the church.
Each weekend. The church will be “handed back” to us each Friday with all equipment tidied away so that weekend services can continue normally.
Approximate more detailed programme:
4th August to 12th September: Work includes installing the control electronics in cupboards at the west end of the church, shelving out these cupboards to make space, re-cabling the choir stall lights, running a cable across the organ loft and fitting the new lights in the west tower, running a data cable across the steps at the west end of the nave.
15th September to 17th October: Fit new lighting in south and north aisles.
20th October to 27th November: Fit new lighting in the nave.
5th January to 6th February: Complete nave works if required, fit new lighting in chancel.
9th February to 6th March: Fit new lighting in north and south chapels.
9th to 13th March: Test and commission.
The existing lighting will be removed when work starts in each area and temporary lighting will be provided during the period when the new lights are being fitted.
For Christmas we may have the new lights in both the side aisles and nave with controls which are just a simple on/off switch.
For the period of the installation the following services and activities have been moved to the parish rooms: Tinies, Wednesday Morning Prayer, Wednesday 9:30am Holy Communion, and Silent Prayer.
Work will stop for funerals and weddings.
There will be a display in church from late August onwards which I will endeavour to keep up-to-date to show progress and, of course, updates on the church website and in the Parish News. If you have any questions at any time, please do not hesitate to ask.
Steve Hasler
3rd July 2025
Prayers for the Lighting Project
Please also support the project with your prayers.
“We are responsible for this wonderful building and are fortunate to use it for our worship and for it to be used by the wider community, by local schools, for music concerts, and to welcome many visitors each year, both from nearby and from all over the world. With this responsibility comes the need to maintain it in good condition, and to ensure that its facilities continue to support and enhance our worship and welcome in keeping with its grade I, national status.” Rev'd Jeremy Trew.
Here is a pdf of the presentation about the Lighting Project.
You can discover some more information about the project in advance of these meetings by scrolling down or by clicking on these links:
Why are we progressing this project?
Our main altar, dim and only half lit
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The existing lighting was installed in the 1970s and is now failing. It is not so much that the bulbs are failing but the units and system into which they are fitted. Much of the nave lighting has failed and the chancel and sanctuary are now particularly poorly lit. In the south aisle you may have noticed that the statues are now either green or yellow! Unless we replace the system, we will be back to using candles,
doing nothing is not an option.
We are proposing a new design, moving to low energy LEDs, to enhance all the activities and services in every part of the church. An improved atmosphere will highlight the architecture of our magnificent church, improving both our worship and the welcome we offer.
Nave uplighters north side, only 1 of 6 still works
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On winter Sundays, when the lights are on for at least 6 hours, we consume enough electricity to boil 400 domestic kettles! The lighting is the single biggest user of electricity in the church, and is a bill we could reduce by up to £2,000 pa. This would cut our carbon footprint and be a considerable step along the way to become a net carbon zero church, in line with the target set by
General Synod.
There will also be a very significant reduction in the maintenance costs of the current system. Currently a team of at least 6 people have to replace all of the bulbs every 5 years. An LED system of this quality should only require that sort of maintenance every 25 years!
Progress so far
With the agreement of our PCC, the team started to assess the lighting in 2022, developing a Statement of Needs, a Liturgical Statement and an assessment of all the other uses of the church by the wider community of Saffron Walden. A Project Brief was generated and sent to 5 Lighting Designers to request a proposal and cost estimate for a Concept Lighting Design for St Mary’s.
Team members then visited 6 reference projects and the PCC then approved the appointment of CBG Light Perceptions, headed by Bruce Kirk. Bruce has designed the lighting in many cathedrals around the country including recently at St George’s Chapel Windsor.
Bruce’s Concept Design can be seen in 6 videos clips, each 2 minutes long, which show the look and feel of the proposed lighting. Click on each one to play. Each video shows part of the church, first in daylight and then in darkness, followed by the effect of turning on the various proposed new sets of lights. The labels on the right of most slides should help.
Nave Facing East - Wide View
Nave Facing East - Close View
Nave Facing West
Chancel
Remembrance Chapel
North Chapel
Funding and Fundraising
Due to the sheer size of St Mary’s, our own funds will be insufficient to pay for the design and installation. A Fundraising Team have started researching possible Trusts and Foundations so that we can make applications as soon as the project costs are finalised. The Fundraising Team are also considering whether Crowd Funding might work.
Some legacies and other donations have been given for improvements to the fabric of the church, and are restricted for these uses rather than the mission and day-to-day running of the church. The lighting project will not use funds donated through our stewardship scheme or pledged to the Stewardship Campaign earlier this year, which are explicitly for the day-to-day needs of the church.
St Mary’s church is a building of national significance so we hope that funders who support the heritage of our nation will contribute significantly to the cost of the project.
The Lighting Team
Please feel free to approach any members of the Lighting Team with any questions you may have:
• Steve Hasler - Project Leader
• Barbara Flaxman – Congregation member and Team Secretary
• Edward Gildea – Eco Church representative
• Paula Griffiths – Retired member of our clergy team, with previous career in church buildings
• Simon Potter – Churchwarden
• Denis Tindley – former Churchwarden and Chair of Property Committee
• Noel Starr – Church Choir representative