Plasterers and Renderers in Churchtown
The old village end of Southport, where what you are not allowed to do matters as much as what you can.
Southport, the Sefton coast, Liverpool and West Lancashire
A village core with rules attached
Churchtown is the oldest part of Southport and the heart of it is a conservation area, with listed and locally-listed buildings scattered through it and thatch still on a few of them. That changes the first question on any external job from what would look best to what is actually permitted, because on a listed building or in a conservation area rendering an elevation that was never rendered is a change of appearance, not a maintenance job.
We are not a planning consultant and we will not pretend otherwise. What we will do is tell you plainly when we think a job needs consent before anyone touches it, rather than quoting for work that puts you in front of the council afterwards. On plenty of Churchtown property the honest answer is that the outside should be repaired and repointed and left looking like what it is.
Lime-era walls do not want a modern coat
Much of the older Churchtown stock predates cavity construction and a good deal of it predates cement. Those walls were built to move slightly, to take up water and to give it back through soft mortar and soft plaster. Coat one in a hard modern render and the water stops leaving through the face; it goes further in, comes out somewhere else, and takes the brick or the stone with it when it freezes.
So the specification here is led by the wall rather than the catalogue. Breathable materials, soft mixes, and repair rather than replacement wherever the original is sound. That is slower and it is more hand work, and it is the difference between a repair that lasts and one that quietly does damage for ten years.
Interiors are where most of the work is
Behind those frontages are the deepest cornices and the best ceilings in the area: run mouldings, roses, arched hallways, moulded stair strings, most of it painted over so many times the detail has gone soft. Bringing that back is careful hand work: taking the profile off a sound length of original, running new work to match it, and stopping the new where the old still has something to give.
The other constant is ceilings. Lath and plaster that has started to part from the joists is usually past patching, and overboarding and skimming is the sound answer, but it has to be worked up to the cornice rather than across it. Skimming straight over an original cornice takes an afternoon and cannot be undone.
What we are asked for most in Churchtown
Decorative Plasterwork
Cornice, ceiling roses and panelled ceilings restored, matched and run in where sections are missing.
Read moreInternal Plastering
Skimming, float and set, ceilings and repairs. Flat walls that take paint evenly and stay that way.
Read moreExternal Rendering
Re-rendering tired, cracked and blown elevations, including stripping off failed pebbledash first.
Read moreSilicone Rendering Systems
Breathable, through-coloured render built up over Atlas basecoat and mesh. No paint film to fail.
Read moreWork we have written up here: a terrace in Churchtown taken off a tired grey painted render. Everything else is on our work.
Questions from Churchtown customers
Our house is in the conservation area. Can it be rendered?
Sometimes, and sometimes it should not be. Rendering an elevation that was never rendered changes the appearance of the building, and in a conservation area or on a listed property that is a question for the council before it is a question for a plasterer. We will tell you when we think consent is needed rather than quote around it.
Can you match cornice that is missing in places?
Yes. Where a sound length of the original survives we take the profile off it and run new work to match, then piece it in. It is hand work and it takes longer than replacing the lot with something off the shelf, which is exactly why it is worth doing on a period room.
Do you cover Churchtown?
Yes. We work from Liverpool Road in Southport and Churchtown is about four miles up the road, so it is one of the closest places we go. We can usually come and look at a job within a few days of you calling.
Can I see work you have done near Churchtown?
The gallery on this site is all our own work across Southport and the coast, grouped by service. Ask when you call if you want to see something specific: a silicone render, a media wall, a restored ceiling. We will point you at the relevant photos.
What customers said
4.7 out of 5 on Google and 5.0 from 35 reviews on MyBuilder, plus 100% recommended from 6 recommendations on Facebook. Every review below is verbatim from those profiles, and each one says which.
I received a first class service from Birkdale Plastering. Anthony always attended as arranged. He was invariably polite and hard-working and cleared any mess before leaving. I am very pleased with the finished job.
Antony did a great job would highly recommend him
Render of an outside wall. Excellent job and finish Turned up when he said, cleaned up and took the time to protect the areas around the job. Would highly recommend to family and friends.
Anthony did an outstanding job pebble-dashing our entire house. It was a challenging project but he handled every aspect with professionalism and care—nothing was ever too much trouble. He worked incredibly hard and maintained a clean and tidy worksite throughout. We couldn’t be happier with the result.
Anthony has done an excellent plastering job today for us in Formby. Repaired a hole on our kitchen ceiling after a leak whilst on holiday. Very good finish and so tidy too! Would Definitely recommend him!
Outstanding work would highly recommend went above and behond with everything, if anyone needs rendering this is your man.
Other areas we cover
Based on Liverpool Road in Southport. We work right along the Sefton coast, down into Liverpool, and inland across West Lancashire as far as Preston. Every town below has a page of its own.
Get a free written estimate
Tell us what the walls are doing and we will come and look. You will get an honest assessment and a written price, with no obligation and no pressure.
Get in touch
Tell us what the walls are doing and we will come and look. Free written estimate, no obligation.
- Phone 07923 545449
- Email anthony9thompson@yahoo.co.uk
- Address
Birkdale Plastering and Rendering
546 Liverpool Road, Southport PR8 3BG - Opening hours Every day, 7am to 9pm