Stone decay and rusting to iron cramps used in Victorian spires to hold masonry have blighted some buildings, while high winds and heavy rain are a constant threat. Even woodpecker damage has been blamed for damage to wooden spires.
Repairs to church spires are expensive, partly due to the costs of erecting scaffolding and the specialist work required by stonemasons and structural engineers.
"It's not easy to 200 feet in the air. We ended up being able to do some temporary repairs by hiring in what was the tallest cherry picker in the country at the time, but now we've got to go back and do those repairs permanently," said Mark Parsons, operations manage, Christchurch Clifton in Bristol.
If we were to scaffold from the bottom, from the ground up I think we would be looking at 37 layers of scaffolding and a cost for the scaffolding alone at well over £100,000, so as you can imagine we're trying to find alternative ways of doing that," he added.
Over the last three years, the National Churches Trust says it has helped fund repairs to 17 parish church spires in England, Wales and Northern Ireland, investing over £370,000 in their future.
Claire Walker, CEO of the National Churches Trust said: "Soaring high above their surroundings, church spires were often built as an attempt to get as close to Heaven as possible. Sadly, these days many are in danger of going in the other direction."
Save Our Spires from National Churches Trust on Vimeo.
