EBL Group invests £1m turning old Cheshire chapel into new homes

Construction firm EBL Group has ploughed £1m into transforming an old chapel in Preston on the Hill, Cheshire, for the residential market.

Having snapped up St Faith’s Mission for £280k at an auction televised by BBC programme Homes Under the Hammer in 2007, EBL Group turned the building into new homes spread across four floors.

Built in 1887, St Faith’s Mission is now split into four dwellings - the Rectory, the Chapel House, the Nave and the Bell Tower.

Eddie Basnett, EBL Group’s managing director, said: “It’s been a labour of love from start to finish. The chapel was really sad and neglected when we took it on.

“When we first walked in there were pews, prayer books, a font, pulpit and an organ. It was all left as though someone had walked out after a service, locked the door and then never come back.”

He added: “We had a vision and even though it’s taken almost a decade it’s finally come to pass.”

When the property was first acquired, EBL Group was preparing to start conversion work just as the recession hit. As a result, the company decided to place the project on hold until the economy picked up enough for the development to proceed.

Eddie continued: “You can’t rush a job like this and it’s been worth the wait. We’re very fortunate to have a planning department and building control team at Halton Borough Council that have been helpful and patient throughout all the years we’ve had this job on our books.

“It’s great to see the life put back into this historic building once again.”

All four of the homes are now sold.

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