The Upper Mill in happier times
Following concerns expressed by the Friends of The Grove Park, local residents and local councillors, here is the response from council officers on the repairs to the Upper Mill, Grove Park, Carshalton:-
Dear Councillor Pollock
The Upper Mill
Thank you for your enquiry on behalf of Jean Raffe, Hon. Secretary of the Friends of Grove Park. The Upper Mill is managed by the Museum and Heritage Service, although it has no direct budget allocation.
The Upper Mill has been subject to vandalism, particularly since May 2011 but the Council’s insurance does not cover malicious damage as the building is unoccupied and not in use. We are very concerned about the issues raised and have investigated various solutions to this problem.
A temporary covering was installed over the Upper Mill to protect it from the weather in late 2011 but this has deteriorated and now needs replacing. The cost of replacing with a heavy duty covering that would be less susceptible to the weather is estimated at £4500.
The Council’s Museum and Heritage Service and the Property Services Team have discussed replacing the roof tiles with a vandal proof steel tile that has the appearance of traditional roof tiles. I am waiting for a quote to do this work. It would require Listed Building Consent but English Heritage have indicated that they would be happy with this solution.
The Council has discussed the Upper Mill with the Heritage Lottery Fund officers but, because of the limitations of access, they were not optimistic that a financial bid would be successful to refurbish the facility. I have also spoken with the Wandle Trust to see if the Upper Mill could form part of their work in Carshalton, but again there were issues with access and funding.
A further temporary weatherproof covering is one of the items being considered for the Council’s Public Realm Funding by the Area Committee on 15th May 2013. The Heritage Service is continuing to explore ways of providing the Upper Mill with a secure future.
I will keep you informed of any opportunities that arise.
Yours sincerely
Jane Allen, Service Manager: Heritage