Walter Douglas-Campbell employed some of the leading craftsmen of the era to work on St Conan’s Kirk. This included the metalwork in the building much of which was made by the renowned arts and crafts metalworker, Thomas Hadden. The gates to St Conval’s Chapel and St Brides Chapel are especially important. After 100 years the gates were showing major signs of corrosion due to the damp, unheated location. Following repairs to the roof leaks above the Chapel in 2017, we managed in 2018 to obtain recommendations from conservators for how best to repair the gates and identified a way forward involving temporary removal of the gates for conservation. In 2018 we obtained a grant from a local renewable energy fund of £7,000 towards the costs and in 2019 2 other supporters, the Idlewild Trust and the Ironmonger’s Company agreed to contribute to the restoration.

The gates were removed in August 2019 and after extensive repairs were returned in November 2019 and are now resplendent. We have a small number of other metalwork items to conserve and repaint. 

St Conval Chapel Gates

St Brides Chapel Gates