Daventry building firm wins award for amazing restoration of historic cottage

MJ Parratt & Son Ltd won the award at the FMB’s 2021 Eastern Counties Master Builder Awards after being praised for restoration work on the stunning property in Adstone.

The awards were hosted online on May 13 and are held to recognise excellence in the region’s small and medium-sized construction companies.

M J Parratt & Son was awarded the Medium Renovation Project award for the restoration of the old and neglected cottage, which was originally owned by a monk.

The company will now go on to compete for the national awards.

The extensive restoration project required the utmost care and attention in choosing the right materials and methods due to the unique challenges posed by such an old building with listed status.

The old mortar which was damaging the stonework was replaced with a 3:1 lime mortar, by M J Parratt’s 77-year-old master mason, Pete Adkins.

Sheep’s wool was used to insulate the barn, and a lime plaster blended with horse hair was used to refurbish the original metal guttering. An old rotting oak frame was repaired by splicing a new section of oak, and the roof, riddled with woodworm, was replaced by reusing the existing roof tiles.

All stone from demolition was saved and reused, and excess soil was leveled and re-seeded.

Martyn Parratt, from M J Parratt and Son said: “We always have the ‘no problem, only solution’ mentality along with good builder/customer communication.

“The award makes us feel very proud of the recognition, however, this is only achieved through team work."