Restoring the Roman empire...

A contract to rebuild part of the historic Chester city walls, which collapsed last year, has been won by a specialist restoration company in Oldham.

A 30-metre section of the walkway — parts of which date to medieval and Roman times — failed in April, 2008.

Work to repair the damage is expected to take between 32 and 52 weeks depending what the specialist team from the Salmon Fields Business Park, Royton, discover once work starts.

The initial phase will be painstaking as the wall in the collapsed area is taken down stone by stone. Each individual piece will be engraved with a reference number and catalogued so that each can be put back in its exact place.

The ‘fill’ between the two outer stone skins will be checked by archaeologists for items of interest.

The full value of the project will not be known until the Maysand team discover just how stable the structure is, though initial estimates suggest the work could cost up to £880,000.

Maysand managing director Bryn Lisle told Chronicle Business: “This is a fascinating job

as the walls are a scheduled, ancient monument.

“We will be re-using as much of the original masonry as possible - that’s why every stone we take down has to be individually numbered and catalogued. Each has to go back in its right place.

“We will take the wall down to ground level — possibly further though we would prefer not to disturb the original Roman wall at all.

“Until we actually start work it will be difficult to assess how stable the remaining wall is and the full extent of the problem. A lot of work has been done to help discover the reasons for the collapse and look for any other potential weak spots in adjoining sections.”

Maysand will be working closely with Chester Renaissance on behalf of Cheshire West and Chester Councils, and Gifford Structural Engineering, throughout the project.

Stabilisation work, including props and anchors to support the internal face, are helping prevent any risk of further collapse.

The walkway has been closed to the public and one of the immediate priorities is to re-open public access. A specialist company will install a temporary steel walkway in July, enabling residents and visitors to view the re-construction work.

Cheshire West and Chester Councillor Herbert Manley said: “The walls are key to Chester’s identity, part of what makes the city so special. They are a fantastic tourist attraction and an important thoroughfare for residents.

“The temporary walkway around the works will allow people to walk the complete circuit

for the first time in more than a year and give people the chance to see this fascinating work in progress.”

Maysand has worked on a wide range of restoration, regeneration and preservation projects including the Manchester City Art Gallery, Dunham Massey, the Port of Liverpool Building, and Chethams School of Music.