Thursday 23 December 2021
The former Candie Gardens ticket office has been restored to its original form after a local contractor, Arthur Leadbeater, volunteered to take on the project. This little building served the island for many years as a ticket office for Candie Gardens and is considered a charming little piece of Guernsey heritage.
When tickets stopped being sold at this location, the ticket office fell into disuse and has been covered in ivy for many years. The abandoned building was uncovered earlier this year during maintenance of the surrounding area.
The public were very encouraging of the building's rejuvenation and Agriculture, Countryside & Land Management Services (ACLMS) were delighted when local builder, Arthur Leadbeater, kindly offered to restore and repair the derelict building at no charge. The restoration has now been completed and ACLMS would like to thank and commend Mr Leadbeater for his work.
Mr Leadbeater organised the project and put in around 400 hours of his own time to restore the ticket office to its former glory. A great effort was made to try to incorporate the original features of the building. For example, the original coat hooks were able to be kept, rather than replaced, and the same type of heritage bricks were sourced to replace the broken ones that could no longer be used.
A number of other contractors also donated time and/or resources to help Mr Leadbeater with this project. A special thanks also goes out to:
- Stuart Moncrief Carpentry and River Marsh for fitting the door and lock;
- Sean Thoume and Brendan Evans from Norman Piette Ltd. for supplying the ply and timber for the safety hoarding and the roof;
- Del from Action Scaffolding for erecting scaffolding for safety hoarding and working platforms;
- Terry from T&C Roofing for supplying and laying original and additional slates;
- Thomas Hearne for supplying a large amount of bricks for the restoration;
- Marcel from Foulon Joinery Works for making the new door and frame and machining out the timber for the window frames;
- Franky Brouard, Mr Leadbeater's eldest grandson, for help in erecting the hoarding, taking down the brickwork and concreting the floor. Then on completion of the project, helping to clear the site with the additional help of Marc Leadbeater, Mr Leadbeater's son.
It is yet to be determined if the building will be given a use once more or if it will simply stand as a piece of history for Islanders and visitors to enjoy. Whichever happens, ACLMS are thrilled to have it restored and are extremely grateful to Mr Leadbeater.
