Hewell Grange Footbridge, Worcestershire

Project overview

The Hewell Grange estate, includes a number of notable historic buildings and landscape elements, among them an early 19th-century cast-iron bridge thought to be the work of the Horseley Foundry and designated Grade II. Positioned over a stream to the north of the principal lake, the bridge functions as a useful crossing point while also forming a deliberately crafted feature within the surrounding environment.

Although celebrated primarily for its ironwork, the structure relies heavily on sandstone and masonry components:

  • Sandstone abutments and wing walls forming the interface between the bridge and riverbanks.
  • Sandstone parapets and copings framing the cast-iron balustrades and deck.
  • Masonry approaches and retaining walls integrating the bridge into the wider garden layout.


Over time, the combined effects of weathering, differential movement, freeze–thaw cycles, and water action from the river led to deterioration, including:

  • Open and failed joints in the sandstone parapets and abutments.
  • Displaced and fractured copings, some no longer adequately restrained.
  • Localised stone loss.
  • Evidence of scour and undermining at the toe of the abutments.


In addition to structural and durability concerns, the condition of the bridge posed safety risks for users and detracted from the intended aesthetic of the heritage landscape.

A programme of remedial works was therefore developed, with the key objectives of:

  • Stabilising and consolidating the sandstone and masonry components.
  • Addressing scour and foundation vulnerabilities at the water interface.
  • Retaining as much original fabric as possible, in line with Historic England and local conservation principles.
  • Ensuring that any interventions were visually discreet and compatible with the wider estate.


Staffordshire Cost Consultants Ltd were appointed as Quantity Surveyor to support the delivery of these aims through robust cost management and procurement leadership.


Heritage and conservation context

Conservation principles applied on the project were consistent with Historic England guidance and the Burra Charter-style approach adopted more widely on the estate, namely:

  • Minimum intervention and maximum retention of fabric: Prioritising localised repair and consolidation of sandstone elements over wholesale replacement, and only dismantling where stability or safety required it.
  • Honest repair: Ensuring replacements and indents were clearly legible on close inspection, while remaining sympathetic in colour, tooling and detailing.
  • Reversibility where possible: Using mechanical fixings and construction details that would allow future interventions without unnecessary loss of original material.
  • Respect for setting: Avoiding inappropriate changes to the profile or silhouette of the parapets and abutments that would alter key views within the landscape.


These principles were central to the design process and had direct implications for cost, sequencing and risk, all of which fell within our remit as Quantity Surveyor.


Our appointment and brief

Staffordshire Cost Consultants were appointed at an early stage, following condition surveys and initial feasibility work by the conservation architect and structural engineer. Our brief covered the full pre and post contract quantity surveying service, including:

  • Cost planning and options appraisal to compare different levels of intervention, from minimum necessary stabilisation through to more extensive reconstruction of damaged elements.
  • Development of a procurement strategy for working over water with a combination of general civil engineering and specialist heritage trades.
  • Preparation of a detailed bill of quantities aligned with conservation methodology, including careful breakdowns for provisional and risk-based items such as scour protection and below-water works.
  • Tender evaluation and contract sum negotiation, ensuring that the selected contractor’s pricing was competitive, transparent and aligned with the project’s conservation objectives.
  • Commercial management during delivery, including valuations, change control, risk register management and final account support.

 

Our appointment built on our wider experience at the Hewell Grange Ruins, allowing us to provide continuity in how cost, risk and conservation principles were approached across the estate.


Technical scope of works

Although driven by conservation priorities, the project had a clear technical scope focused on the sandstone and masonry elements of the bridge and its immediate approaches. Key components included:

  • Parapet and spandrel repairs
  • Copings and capping stones
  • Repointing and mortar repairs
  • Scour protection and foundation remediation
  • Interface with ironwork


Our role as QS was to translate these technical requirements into a clear and measurable pricing structure, avoiding ambiguous lump sums that could lead to disputes or uncontrolled cost growth.


Procurement and cost strategy

The constraints of working over a live watercourse, in a heritage landscape, with mixed civil and conservation trades, meant that the procurement strategy required careful thought. Our approach centred on:

  • Selecting a form of contract suitable for a modest but technically complex heritage scheme, with clear mechanisms for valuing variations arising from discoveries on site.
  • Combining lump sum and provisional items, with clearly defined measured works (e.g. parapet dismantling and rebuilding, copings, repointing) supplemented by provisional sums for items such as below-water scour protection and additional stone replacement beyond an agreed baseline allowance.
  • Encouraging realistic programming by asking tenderers to explicitly price preliminaries and access arrangements for working over water, including temporary platforms, scaffolds and environmental protection measures.
  • Ensuring competence in heritage work, by incorporating qualitative assessment criteria focused on the contractor’s experience in stone bridge repairs, lime mortars and work in sensitive settings.


From a cost perspective, we developed an initial cost plan and then refined it into a fully priced bill of quantities issued as part of the tender package. This allowed:

  • Comparison between tenderers, rather than relying on high-level lump-sum offers.
  • Clear identification of where pricing varied significantly between bidders, indicating potential misunderstanding or risk-transfer strategies.
  • A robust baseline for valuation and change control once on site.


Our tender evaluation combined quantitative analysis (comparison of BoQ rates and preliminaries) with qualitative review of method statements and programme. We then supported the client in negotiating a contract sum that reflected both value and realistic risk allowances.


Working over water and ecological considerations

Although the primary focus of the project was structural and fabric repair, the bridge’s position over a watercourse brought ecological and environmental considerations to the fore. In coordination with the design team and ecologist, the project included:

  • Timing constraints to avoid works that could disturb aquatic species during sensitive periods, and to minimise impact on birds and bats using the wider estate.
  • Pollution prevention measures, such as silt curtains, drip trays and careful management of lime mortar washout, all of which have cost and method implications.
  • Restrictions on access and plant, limiting the size and type of equipment that could approach the bridge and work within the river corridor.


From a QS perspective, these factors were captured explicitly within the cost plan and tender documents, rather than being left as unpriced risks. This approach reduced the potential for ecological requirements to manifest as claims or unanticipated variations later in the programme.


Commercial management during delivery

Once the contract was in place, Staffordshire Cost Consultants provided ongoing commercial support to the client, focusing on:

  • Interim valuations and payment certificates, ensuring that measured works, provisional sums and dayworks were fairly reflected in contractor applications, with reference back to the BoQ and agreed valuations.
  • Change control and compensation events, tracking instructions arising from discoveries on site. For example, additional stone replacement discovered during parapet dismantling, and agreeing time and cost implications in a transparent manner.
  • Risk register management, revisiting the risk profile at key milestones: Retiring risks that had been successfully mitigated, such as confirmation that scour conditions were less severe than worst-case assumptions. Introducing new risks where necessary, such as additional coordination required at the interface between stonework and ironwork repairs.
  • Cost reporting, providing clear, client-facing reports that reconciled the original contract sum, agreed changes, forecast final account and remaining risk/contingency.


Our emphasis was on avoiding surprises. Regular commercial reviews with the client and project team allowed informed decisions to be made about scope adjustments, prioritisation and contingency usage.


Outcomes and benefits

At completion, the remedial works to the Hewell Grange footbridge delivered a range of tangible outcomes:

  • Stabilised sandstone fabric
  • Improved resilience to water action
  • Enhanced appearance in the landscape
  • Controlled and transparent outturn cost
  • Positive stakeholder confidence


For the estate as a whole, the bridge’s remediation complements wider conservation work at Hewell Grange, reinforcing the coherence of the landscape and demonstrating a holistic commitment to heritage stewardship.


Why Staffordshire Cost Consultants

This project illustrates the value that a heritage-aware Quantity Surveyor brings to relatively modest yet technically demanding schemes such as historic bridge repairs. Staffordshire Cost Consultants contributed by:

  • Aligning cost and conservation, translating philosophical principles such as minimum intervention and maximum retention into structured cost plans and realistic risk allowances.
  • Providing clear measurement and documentation, enabling competitive tendering on a like-for-like basis and reducing commercial ambiguity.
  • Understanding the realities of working over water, and reflecting ecological and environmental constraints directly within the pricing structure and risk register.
  • Maintaining disciplined yet pragmatic commercial control during delivery, supporting the client with valuations, change control and risk management that kept the project on a stable financial footing.


At Hewell Grange Footbridge, our role helped ensure that a characterful historic structure, integral to the estate’s identity and visitor experience, was conserved and made safe in a way that respected both its heritage value and the client’s budget.