WW1 'welcome home' window to undergo repairs

2 hours ago

Nathaniel LawsonLocal Democracy reporter

News image — The stained-glass window in the Guildhall in High Wycombe bears the words "Welcome Home Well Done"

Buckinghamshire Council A stained-glass window on a staircase. It features a soldier with a rifle with its butt on the ground. It bears the words: "Welcome Home Well Done." The window also features doves and symbols including a rose, thistle, shamrock and leek. — The stained-glass window in the Guildhall in High Wycombe bears the words "Welcome Home Well Done"

A century-old stained-glass window welcoming soldiers home from World War One is to undergo repairs after its lower section began to bow.

Buckinghamshire Council has approved work on the memorial window at the Grade I listed Guildhall in High Wycombe.

Installed in 1923, the window's inscription commemorates 5,000 men from the town who fought in the war and returned home.

The Guildhall window was donated by Charles Raffety, who had previously commissioned stained glass for Wycombe Town Hall.

Made in the studios of the late Arthur Dix, the window, which is around 2.45m (more than 8ft) high, pays tribute to the men who served in the Army, Navy and Mercantile Navy.

Badges represent 12 military units and organisations associated with Wycombe men, according to the Local Democracy Reporting Service.

Google A Guildhall in a town centre. There are arches and columns on the ground floor which people can walk through into the open space. The first floor of the red brick building has large windows and there is a flagpole attached to the side. — A stainless-steel guard is planned for the outside of the window to protect it from vandalism

The proposed repair would flatten the bowed section to prevent further movement and possible failure of the glass.

A stainless-steel guard, powder-coated black, is also planned for the outside of the window on the building's west side.

But the High Wycombe Society has raised concerns that the guard could obscure the artwork, which depicts a white-robed figure of peace welcoming a weary soldier and adorning him with a laurel wreath.

A design statement said councillors requested protection because the window was considered vulnerable to vandalism in its town centre location.

The society said any protective measure should be of high quality and allow people to appreciate the window in its "full glory".

It also warned that the guard could harm views of the stained glass when it is unlit from inside.

The council's planning officer acknowledged those concerns but concluded that an external guard was the most effective way to safeguard the window alongside the repair.

The listed building consent was issued on Monday but the documents do not say when work will start.

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