Converting a disused church hall

As Architects, Paul and Jane Moscardini were keen to find an unusual property with large, flexible spaces in which to live. Having scoured the better areas of Liverpool to no avail, their discovery of a derelict Catholic church hall for sale in Woolton where Paul had grown up - seemed an ideal opportunity.

The hall had been used for social events and as a créche and youth club, and was part of a group of church owned buildings which had gradually been sold off for numerous uses, including a doctor's surgery and a parish centre. The road itself was on the site of the quarry from which the stone had been taken to build Liverpool Cathedral. Consequently, it and all the surrounding properties are built in the local sandstone.

"There was no land with St Marys Hall," explains Paul, who eventually persuaded the Catholic Church to parcel up an area of the playground from the old church school next door in order to create a garden. "The hall had been marketed via a commercial estate agent as an office or similar building, but the addition of the land made us determined to proceed and turn it into a house."

The couple did their sums, and concluded that to purchase the hall for £68,000 plus the cost of conversion would be comparable to the price of buying a three bedroom detached house in the same area. "There was an awful lot of potential," says Jane.

The church hall is located adjacent to the church and graveyard and came with a covenant giving the Church access on to the Moscardinis' garden in order to maintain the services running beneath it. Additionally, it was agreed in writing that the couple would not use the building for anything other than residential purposes.

Although not listed in its own right, St Marys Hall was built in 1886 and is one of a group of listed buildings in a Conservation Area, which dictated that listed building consent was required, in addition to planning consent for a change of use to a residential dwelling procedures which passed without incident.

"We always intended the interior of the hall to have a contemporary feel," states Paul. "There had been a fire inside and, although the exterior remained undamaged, there was little apart from the original trusses left to retain internally. In some ways this strengthened our resolve to strip it out completely and start from scratch - a plan which was acceptable to the Conservation Officer."

Having taken out a loan to purchase the building, the couple needed to sell their previous home to raise enough capital to proceed with the conversion - moving into a rented house for six months with their two young children while the bulk of the work was undertaken. A stage payment mortgage was arranged with the Derbyshire Building Society five years ago and, at that time, Paul found the choice of self-build mortgages to be fairly limited. As a conversion of a non residential building all of the building work was eligible for VAT relief. They paid VAT to their contractors and suppliers, but were able to reclaim most of the VAT paid out after completion under Customs and Excise Notice 719.

"I had taken time off after we had our second daughter," Jane says, "and was able to run the job from the rented house while Paul continued working full time." Two architects collaborating can cause a clash of egos and ideas but Jane and Paul seemed to manage the design stage of the project with ease. "There were a few disagreements here and there, but the end result was something we were both happy with," remarks Paul, who claims the design was truly a mutual effort.

Structurally the hall was sound, with the foundations built off rock - which actually caused a few problems when it came to digging out for internal load bearing walls. The Moscardinis installed a new damp proof course throughout, whilst building regulations standards for energy efficiency were met by dry lining the thick sandstone walls with insulation on the inner leaf, and installing double glazing.

Three elevations are on view and so the existing window openings had to be maintained. New replacement double glazed units were made to exactly match the originals. On the garden elevation, however, the original openings have been altered - initially a bone of contention with the planners. Here, a large section of wall has been demolished and rebuilt to accommodate three sets of French windows leading out onto decking, and fitted into stone surrounds at lower level to allow enough space for the addition of a first floor. This accommodates an open plan living room, featuring the original arched window and exposed roof trusses and three bedrooms lit by rooflights.

Tie members at low level meant that the original trusses had to be altered in order to create the headroom necessary for the new first floor. These were removed and the rafters reinforced, with new tie members positioned at a higher level - all calculated by a structural engineer. The original slate roof, complete with dovecote and weathervane, was in quite good condition and retained.

Paul and Jane tendered the work to two builders known to them from previous projects and opted for the lowest quote by a shopfitting company, who worked in conjunction with subcontractors, with Paul fitting the kitchen and landscaping the garden himself.

Eventually, as funds allow, the Moscardinis will convert the room to the rear of the ground floor into their master bedroom but, for now, they are simply enjoying the space such a building affords.

"It is enjoyable watching people's reactions when they walk inside the house," says Paul. "From viewing the outside they expect a traditional interior and get something completely different!"

Further reading:

• Converting a Church
• Converting a Ruined Chapel
• How to Spot the Best Conversion Opportunities