Restoration Work To do

Restoration Work
The Restoration Plan
The Stowe House Preservation Plan envisaged a six-phase restoration of Stowe House as follows:

Phase 1	The restoration of the North Front and Colonnades
Phase 2	The Restoration of the Central Pavilion and South
	Portico
Phase 3	The restoration of the South Front
Phase 4	The restoration of the West Pavilions and building
	range
Phase 5	The restoration of the Eastern Pavilions and building
	range
Phase 6	The restoration of the State Rooms

The Stowe House Preservation Trust also continues to build up an endowment fund for the longer-term maintenance of restoration works now being carried out.

Phases 1 and 2 are now completed

Phase Three: The Restoration of the South Front
The next challenge is the restoration of the impressive South Front which, due to its scale, will be divided into a number of sub-phases. These, with their estimated costs, are:

A.	The State Library roof, facades and ceiling (ca £2.24M)
B.	The Eastern Pavilion roof, facades and garden (ca £2.20M)
C.	The Western Pavilion roof, and facades (ca £2.34M)
E.	The State Dining roof, facades, ceiling and garden (ca £1.64M)

The State Library and Ante Library, immediately to the east of the central pavilion, require the most urgent attention. In particular the reconstruction of the original roof structure which was stripped away around 100 years ago. Beneath this roof is the valuable and ornate plaster ceiling of the Library. Over the years, the weight of the plaster ceiling, the weakened timber structure, and weathering and water damage have resulted in the Library roof and ceiling being left in a state of emergency.

Conservation scrapings of the ornate plaster ceiling suggested that it was originally gilded. The ceiling will be conserved, repaired and redecorated. The opportunity will also be taken to re-present the Library as a whole and extend the interpretation facilities.
On the South Front further render and stonework repairs will be carried out together with comprehensive joinery repairs to the windows, so that it can be united with the work already completed to the Central Pavilion on the South Front in Phase Two.