Interactors Wanted

George St Chapel Experience Tours tell the story of the chapel and the people who built and worshipped there. 

Our unique story cannot be complete without visiting life below the chapel...... by meeting the cellar dwellers and the school mistress , and by chatting to the washer women on Jackson Pit our story of George Street Chapel really comes to life. 

We are looking for NEW VOLUNTEERS to join our Chapel Interactors and help us tell the story to visiting tour groups. No experience necessary and full training will be given but a sense of fun is paramount!! 

To join our happy team of volunteer interactors and help us tell our unique Oldham story please call Maggie on 07557276518 or 0161 633 0213

email maggie.hurley@ageukoldham.org.uk

Material Urgently Needed

As we are getting closer to the opening of George Street Chapel I am busily making costumes with our craft group but urgently need fabric and other items for costumes which range from children aged 5 to adult aged 82!
Please can you have a look at home and ask friends and relatives if they have any of the following they would like to donate to us :-
1 Old ‘scratchy’ blankets/army blankets
2 Dark heavy non patterned material – black/grey/navy
3 Mens braces – with button straps not clips
4 Old cotton material ( to make aprons & mop caps ) – heavy cotton lining from curtains is great – the more faded and worn the better – or worn out plain cotton tea towels
5 Flat caps both boys & mens
6 wing collar shirts – men
7 Dark waistcoats men & boys
8 Mens dark jackets & trousers
9 Mens scarves – not silk or heavy patterned
10  Any elastic / old buttons
11 – and just in case ……. You never know whatyou might find under your bed – CLOGS!!! ( bit of a long shot but worth a try eh?)
Thanks
Maggie
Maggie HurleyVolunteer &  Community Service ManagerBefriending Service – IT & Digital Programme- Chadderton Over 60’s Centre – Intergenerational Educational Projects – Activity & Community Groups – Community EventsAge UK OldhamDirect Line: 0161 622 9252  Head Office: 0161 633 0213
Fax: 0161 620 6197  Address: 10 Church Lane, Oldham OL1 3AN
Email:maggie.hurley@ageukoldham.org.uk  Web: www.ageukoldham.org.uk

Day 227 - Recruiting New FOGS

Week 46 - Day 227
Maggie Hurley, Community Development Officer for Age UK Oldham started recruitment for new FOGS today with a photo for the local press on the front steps of the chapel. Also there was Roy Lees who has been undertaking local research into the chapel and its cellar dwelling tenants.

Day 162 - FOGS Visit Organ Restoration

Week 34 - Day 162
Friends of George Street made a visit to David Wood, organ builders today to take a look at the completed organ restoration. Well, at least the musical side of the restoration. The casework still needs decisions to be made about whether it will be stained or painted, and decisions also need to be taken about how the facade pipes will be re-painted and decorated to reconstruct the original decorative scheme.

David Wood, organ builder, Huddersfield
 describes one of the metal pipes to Friends of George Street.

YOUTUBE Video of restoration and tuning work

Visit by Friends of George Street

There was a visit to the chapel today by the Friends of George Street with some staff and trustees of Age UK Oldham. The group was escorted around the building works by site supervisor Ian

Tour of building works at George Street Chapel for the
Friends of George Street.

Vist to GSC by FOGS

A special Study Day for the Friends of George Street included a special tour of the building site  today.
Project Manager and Site Manager, Mike and Ian, took the FOGS around the site explaining the work that had been done so far and what was going to happen as work proceeded to fulfil Age UK Oldham plans.
The value of the tented enclosure was clearly demonstrated as we walked about on the roof scaffolding in the dry and safely despite the rain outside.
To see a video of the visit click here.

,

Site induction and safety talk.
Issuing of hard hats and high viz jackets. 

In the basement cellar, walking on the recently poured concrete floor.

The main chapel floor with the temporary floor above.

In the amongst the roof trusses standing on the temporary work floor.

The roof, looking at where a new stone gutter will be made and fitted
to replace the cast iron gutter which had been used to replace
original stone one, on the George Street elevation.

FOGS Study Day - Sat 11 May

We have had two attempts at holding a Study Day to look at the history and development of George Street Chapel. Both have been cancelled at the last minute because of heavy snow falls.
hopefully our new date of Saturday 11 May will go off without a hitch!

FOGS Study Day Cancelled for 2nd Time

Our Friends of George Street Study Day has had to be cancelled for a second time - again for snow.
We are located in yet another Amber Alert by the Met Office for heavy snow. It started last night and is to continue into Saturday. A new date is to be set for April.

FOGS Study Day - 23 March

We have rescheduled the Study Day we had to cancel in January because of the snow to Saturday 23 March. Same agenda as last time. Start at 12.30 at Age UK Oldham, Church Lane.
The purpose of the session is to review all the information we have and to identify tasks that need to be done to fill in any gaps we might have. So, if you have any information you are willing to share, or want to help us gather more information about the Chapel, the cellar dwellings, the Sunday School or George Street please come along.

AGENDA

To pull together information on the following topics and draft a work programme to fill in gaps.

1. Independent Methodism and the Nields

2. The chapel as a building

3. Those who lived in the cellar dwellings

4. The local area of George Street

5. Organisations who used the chapel - Boys Brigade, Temperance etc

6. The restoration works programme

7. Itinary for trips FOGS members could make 

- to other chapel projects;

- Organ restoration to see David Wood, Huddersfield etc

Day 15 - Windows - Lambert Walker Team - Peter and Plasterwork

Week 3 - Day 15
Summary of the week.
The remaining chapel windows were removed today. A long and tiring job for the team involved, but essential if the scaffolders are to complete the final sections of scaffolding next week. Well done Ian, Chris, Sam and Ali.
Also thanks to Peter Longley, a member of our FOGS group who has been helping with the photographic record.
The removal of the internal plaster has also nearly finished, revealing some interesting things about the construction, alterations and decoration of the chapel over its life-time.
More information on these discoveries next week.

George Street Chapel protected by scaffolding and waiting for its roof covering
to be completed in Week 4 of the works schedule.

Window freed and leaning inwards ready for lifting out.

Window tipped ready for lifting upwards and inwards.

Lambert Walker Team - Site Manager, Ian Mullin
Chris Marshall, Ali Walker, Sam McNamara.

Peter Longley, FOGS, one of those who is helping keep a photographic record
of the works to conserve, repair and adapt George Street Chapel.

FOGS Study Day Cancelled

Unfortunately because of heavy overnight snow, over a foot in places, our FOGS Study day has been cancelled today. Will repost when a new date can be scheduled in. Many apologies.

FOGS Study Day 26 Jan, 2013

There will be a Friends of George Street Study Day

Saturday 26 January, 2013.

10.30 to 4.30pm

at

Age UK Oldham

Church Lane

Oldham

AGENDA

To pull together information on the following topics and draft a work programme to fill in gaps.

1. Independent Methodism and the Nields
2. The chapel as a building
3. Those who lived in the cellar dwellings
4. The local area of George Street
5. Organisations who used the chapel - Boys Brigade, Temperance etc
6. The restoration works programme
7. Itinary for trips FOGS members could make 
- to other chapel projects;
- Organ restoration to see David Wood, Huddersfield etc

Friends of George Street December Meeting

The next FOGS, Friends of George Street, meeting will be held at Age UK office on wednesday 12 December. If you are coming along please RSVP to Maggie Hurley, Community Development Officer at Age UK Oldham.

Reconstruction Filming - first cut

Take 27 have made a first draft of the photo-montage filming we carried out yesterday, Sunday 30 September. The attempt to make 30 people look like a congregation of 150 is really taking shape.

Reconstruction Filming Day 30 Sept 2012

We spent all day today filming a reconstruction of a congregation at George Street Chapel. This will feature within our interpretation video, which will describing the history of the chapel from its construction to the present day. Our 'congregation' was made up of Friends of George Street and Age UK Oldham staff, friends and relatives. Many thanks to you all.
A short video of the filming day will be uploaded to our new 'FriendsofGeorgeSt' Youtube video channel. Link from the embedded video in this post, or the video bar on the right.
                                                          http://youtu.be/V5ahi_HChbk

Claire Duval and Julian Baum filming 'close-ups'.

Start-up Design Team and FOGS Meetings

In June we held the start-up meetings of the George Street Chapel project following the approval of the HLF award to the Age UK Oldham of £1m and a match funding award of £100,000 from the Andrew Lloyd Webber and English Heritage Challenge Fund administered by the Architectural Heritage Fund .

Match funding is still needed. Particularly towards the cost of refurbishing the organ.

The Project Team

Project Team
centre: Yvonne Lee - CEO Age UK Oldham
Age UK; Lloyd Evans Prichard; The Morton Partnership; HLF
photo : Andrew Fielding

FOGS

FOGS - Friends of George Street research group meeting with
Julian Baum and Claire Duval - Take 27
Maggie Hurley, Jeff Hinchcliffe and Yvonne Lee - Age UK Oldham
Andrew Fielding - A&A Fielding Ltd
photo: Annika Dawson - Age UK Oldham