West side elevation
To supply and fit 7 no. box sash windows: 1600h x 1000w
South entrance elevation
To supply and fit 2 box sash windows to the first floor: 1600h x 1200w
To supply and fit 2 box sash windows to the ground floor: 2100h x 2100w
East side elevation
To supply and fit 1box sash window to the ground floor: 1400h x 900w
To supply and fit 1 bay window to the ground floor bay window: 2400h x 2400w x 600d
- Main entrance doors. Reuse original existing doors, but supply and fit new frame and make good internal damage around door.
Over the last year, as part of the Institute’s ‘Buy a Brick’ campaign to raise funds, a number of members have made donations towards the cost of the Murrills House renovations. A small plaque of recognition for each of those members will be placed on the Board Room wall and work is underway with that project. The Institute is incredibly grateful to those who have been generous. Since that campaign ended, a number of members have asked if they can still donate. So, IIMS has reopened a JustGiving page at
https://bit.ly/2X4Cu9x which will remain open until the end of December 2020. IIMS is most grateful for any additional donations, no matter how small or large.
As part of the deal to acquire Murrills House, in a role reversal, our ex landlord, Casson Beckmann, has become our new tenant. So IIMS is adjusting to life as not only a property owner, but also a responsible landlord. This brings additional responsibilities in several areas, for example fire marshalling responsibility for the building and all its staff, health and safety for the site and keeping the extensive grounds manicured and tidy!
Commenting on the completion of the purchase, Mike Schwarz said, “To secure Murrills House as the long-term head office for the Institute feels like a dream come true and is one of my proudest achievements. It underpins the future of the organisation and provides a valuable asset for its members. Knowing that we are the next guardians of a building with a history going back 500 years is a great responsibility, but one that my colleagues and I will rise to as we look to return this well-known local landmark to its former glory.”
A potted history and guide to Murrills House
What we do know is that Murrills House started life as a tenant farm, part of a much larger estate in the area. Its origins can be traced back centuries and the oldest part (beneath the current Accounts Office), is believed to date from the 1500s when cattle routinely lived in the house. Once it was purchased from the Southwick estate, Murrills House owned in the region of 200 acres with land running down to the water and a large working pig farm. Looking around at the urban sprawl today, that seems almost impossible to imagine. Censuses have been viewed going back to the early 1800s, not long after the census first began in the UK in 1801. Various families are named as having lived at Murrills House, many of them large in number due to the size of the original property which boasted seven bedrooms.
The Curtis family were prominent owners of the building from the late 1800s until just after the second world war. At that time Murrills was clearly well known as the local manor house of the area. The Curtis family, it seemed, enjoyed an enviable and halcyon lifestyle – the house was often thrown open and tennis was a much enjoyed sport on the grass court set within the gardens (sadly a car park now) in what must have been splendidly manicured gardens too.
Interestingly, Murrills House has a fascinating connection with the maritime world. In 1952, Associated British Combustion Ltd acquired the property as their head office and built a factory unit in what was the back garden. Their two most prestigious contracts, both with a Royal connection, were to provide and install the oil-fired heating system at Windsor Castle and to provide the boilers on board the iconic H.M Royal Yacht “Britannia”. How ironic that more than half a century on, IIMS should be set to pick up and continue that nautical mantle once more.
The Report • September 2020 • Issue 93 | 25
Member News
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