Wealden Times | WT168 | February 2016 | Wedding supplement inside

This Grade II Listed 18th-century farmhouse is on the outskirts of
Lamberhurst.
All external elevations required extensive sympathetic repairs and
maintenance to brickwork, chimneys and re-roofing. Traditional lime
mortars, locally soured second-hand bricks and roof tiles were used to
match the existing. A small first-floor window was added to balance the
proportions of the farmhouse and add light to a new bathroom. The
original single glazed windows had to remain and required complete
refurbishment. The entire house was re-wired, re-plumbed with a
pressurised heating and hot water system added using surface copper
pipes so as not to damage the original fabric of the house.
A T Palmer Ltd, Smarden, Kent
When was the company founded, by whom and
where?
In 1949, a young man had a vision of owning his own
business. He discussed this with his wife, as without her help
it would have been impossible. She readily agreed to run the
office and together they bought a small business with six
tradesmen and a dilapidated van. They were Arthur and Myra
Palmer and the firm became known as A T Palmer (Builders
& Contractors) Ltd. The rest is history, as they say.
Today we employ a highly skilled workforce of 30, covering
all trades with many years’ experience, as well as working with
various specialist subcontractors. Our specialist craftsmen
appreciate the buildings they are working on and we run
apprenticeship schemes in various trades – so that our
experts can pass on their skills. Our most recently qualified
carpenter apprentice gained his experience working on a large
timber-framed listed farmhouse renovation and he recently
represented the South of England in the national finals of The
Skill Build competition in Birmingham.
What are the greatest challenges of working on
historic timber framed buildings and what are the
greatest rewards?
Working on historic buildings can have its challenges, with
conservation and listed planning issues, so we have to take
careful consideration of the existing structure as well as
sourcing local natural materials such as clay, timber and stone.
However, the rewards of working on these wonderful old
buildings are that we are able to work closely with our clients
to create their vision, coordinate all trades using traditional
materials and methods that truly take into account the
building’s history whilst blending our work seamlessly into the
structure and providing top quality, contemporary living.
Do you have any recent, interesting projects you
could tell us about?
One recent one was a Grade II Listed 18th-century farmhouse
on the outskirts of Lamberhurst. Before the Industrial
Revolution Lamberhurst was the centre of the Wealden iron
industry. This farmhouse and its estate formed part of the
Gloucester Furnace where they made the railings for St.
Paul’s Cathedral. The farmhouse had been untouched for
60 years. We completed a full renovation, extension and
refurbishment project over 11 months.
Farmhouse before the extension was built
An oak-framed extension was hand-built using green European oak to
form the new kitchen and master bedroom suite. It was constructed using
traditional materials and methods, by skilled craftsmen.
The new porch was hand-built in European oak with bricks
and tiles sourced locally to match the existing house.
71 www.wealdentimes.co.uk