Sunday 16th March will see our conservation work at Penrhyn Quarry Hospital featured on BBC Countryfile as Matt Baker and Joe Crowley explore the Northwest Wales UNESCO World Heritage Site and the epic slate landscape.
In this exciting episode, Countryfile takes viewers deep into the slate landscape of North Wales, uncovering its rich history, the lives of those who worked within the slate quarries, and the legacy of the industrial heritage today. As part of the show, the team visits the ruinous remains of the Penrhyn Quarry Hospital, where the Recclesia team have been carrying out a specialist conservation project to help stabilise and repair this important historic structure.
Built in the 1840s to care for local slate quarrymen, the hospital building was dismantled and left to the elements following the Second World War. In collaboration with Donald Insall Associates and Cadw, we’ve developed a detailed conservation strategy to safeguard what remains of the building, ensuring that all repairs are sensitive to the original fabric, yet practical and resilient.
Recclesia MD and conservator Jamie Moore will be joined on site by Countryfile presenter Joe Crowley, offering a behind-the-scenes look at our conservation work, which ensures that every repair made is honest, legible, and materially sympathetic. Recclesia’s senior stone conservator Paul Warrand will also demonstrate some of the traditional repair techniques in action, and help Joe to have a go himself!
This project is particularly significant to the local community, who have a strong connection to the Penrhyn Quarry Hospital due to its deep ties to the area’s slate quarrying history. The conservation works we’re carrying out are crucial to safeguarding this important landmark and maintaining its link to the region’s past.
Tune in to Countryfile at 5:15pm this Sunday to learn more about the history, legacy, and vital conservation work taking place to safeguard this important part of Wales’ industrial heritage.