Conservation & Heritage Issue 49 October 2025 - Flipbook - Page 110
Getting an education in facade cleaning and restoration
The United Kingdom has some of the world’s most
prestigious and revered educational institutions,
covering all sections of the educational journey, from
early years to post-doctoral learning. Many of these
establishments are housed in buildings which have
significant historical and cultural importance, and there
is a need to maintain and manage the conservation of
these buildings to ensure they are fit for purpose in the
present but are also resilient for the future.
Thomann-Hanry®, the UK’s premier commercial façade
cleaning and restoration company have been involved
with numerous projects covering the education sector
since its founding in 2005. The need to best understand
the specific constraints, such as ensuring all onsite staff
have enhanced DBS check certificates when operating
in an environment where under 18s may be present,
working in specific time-frames (such as evening,
weekend, or holiday operational hours), and being able
to complete works without the use of time-consuming,
intrusive, expensive, and unsightly scaffolding.
Rugby School was founded in 1567 and has a central
campus in the heart of Rugby, Worcestershire. The
site has several Grade I and II listed buildings (and the
‘Island’ tumulus which is a scheduled monument site
which can be found on the world-famous playing field,
the birthplace of Rugby Football). With so many listed
buildings on one site, Thomann-Hanry® was instructed
to carry out a façade survey on the Grade I Listed Rugby
Chapel to assess areas of concern. Conducted over
several days using Mobile Elevating Work Platforms
(MEWPs) the team from Thomann-Hanry® inspected,
tested, and photographed every elevation.
After the site survey took place, the survey team at
Thomann-Hanry® then prepared a detailed survey
report, highlighting the repairs and remediations which
would need to be carried out on each building. This
report allows the estates team at Rugby School to then
plan and schedule the repairs as needed.
Below, Chetwynd Court after cleaning
