40 Sash Windows Repaired at Royal Grammar School

Key features: Commercial, Grade II Listed, Sash Windows, Education, Schools, Renovation, Ventrolla Perimeter Sealing System (VPSS), Double Glazing, Victorian.

Sash window renovation and repair experts Ventrolla had some serious homework to do when they took on the restoration of windows in the old school house at Lancaster Royal Grammar School.

Lancaster Royal Grammar School is one of the UK’s top grammar schools for boys, with more than 1,000 pupils, including 200 boarders and a thriving sixth-form of 350 students.

The Old School House building dates back to 1851 and, on completion, will provide additional teaching space, a large performance area for drama students, a sixth-form centre and a new refectory for sixth-form use.

As part of the plans to bring Old School House back to life, the Grade II listed building needed more than 40 windows renovating or replacing.

Bespoke casements, sash and dormer windows and double glazing replacements were manufactured to match the existing window profiles. To minimise the visual impact of the new windows, some reveals were removed, refitted and then walls were re-plastered to hide the reveals.

The school was successful in gaining a grant of more than £150,000 from the Education Funding Agency to sympathetically replace the windows. The aim is to restore the building back to its rightful place at the centre of the school. Dr Christopher Pyle, Headmaster at Lancaster Royal Grammar School, said:

“The Old School House is a well-loved building and we are delighted with the service that Ventrolla provided. Ventrolla’s team of craftsmen ensured the restoration of the old windows and installation of new ones was sympathetic to the building’s heritage.”

Ventrolla offers a bespoke renovation service for timber sliding sash and casement windows as well as timber doors. The central office is in Harrogate, North Yorkshire, with additional offices located throughout the Ireland and the UK.