The Church of St John The Baptist, Matlock Bath

This Grade II listed chapel was built in 1897 and is the only church to have been designed by Guy Dawber, a renowned architect, first president of the Council for the Preservation of Rural England and president of RIBA (1925-1927). The chapel had suffered years of re-decoration, decay, fire damage and vandalism, including the loss of its original Arts and Crafts stencil décor. Work carried out during this month-long project included the conservation of the chapel’s oak screen, altar reredos, wainscot panelling and Stations of the Cross. This completed project, which was undertaken on behalf of Cricksmith UoL, was commended as 'heroic' by the English Heritage Angel Awards and was nominated in recognition of “…the tremendous time, effort and determination to rescue St John the Baptist Chapel”.

Conservator Jade Maloney holds a paintbrush and retouches a decorative painted panel during restoration.

Photo showing the outside of the church of saint john the baptist, matlock bath

Blue painted wall panelling within a church

Panelling before and after treatment

Laser cutting stencils

Wooden panelling within a church painted in blue, green, gold and red.

An area of wooden moulding to an alterpiece which is broken

An area of wooden moulding of an alterpiece after it has been restored

Hand modelling and retouching losses to reredos composition detail

Historic alterpiece within a church befoe conservation, showing dirty blue panels and dirty gilding

Alterpiece within a church which has been newly restored. Showing green, red and gold stencil decoration on blue panles and newly gilded mouldings

Reredos before and after revealing of original scheme

Burn damage on a historic decorative panel is getting restored. A paintbrush is applying consolidant.

Consolidating area of candle damage prior to filling

Alter panel depicting jesus on a wooden cross on a blue painted background.

Alter panel which has been restored showing gilded mouldings, and a stencil decoration in green, red and gold on a blue background

Reredos before and after revealing of original scheme