Restoration crews at Slough Fort are applying the finishing layer of granite chippings to the East Magazine as concrete repairs near completion, according to the Slough Fort Preservation Trust. Once the hardened surface sets, volunteers will grind it down to recreate the Victorian-era texture that clad the structure when the fort was built in 1867.
Elsewhere on the Allhallows site, donated Victorian magazine doors have been fitted in Casemate 4, where timber floorboards, a cleaned fireplace and a new York stone hearth are already in place. Volunteers are now tackling the ceiling of an extension that was added when the casemate was converted into officers’ quarters during the fort’s later years as a barracks. Bespoke joinery for the room has been ordered but carries a three- to four-month lead time, the Trust notes.
Recent storms have exposed fresh water ingress that will stretch the restoration programme further. Soil has been stripped from above the magazine after rain forced water through the damaged bitumen, and a second leak was discovered elsewhere inside the Scheduled Ancient Monument that still lets water through roughly 36 hours after rainfall. The low-lying magazine sits about 25 feet below ground level, a design that has plagued the fort with damp since it was built to counter French ironclad ships on the Thames Estuary.
The charity, which funds its work entirely through grants and guided tour income, secured a major Heritage Fund award in October 2024 under the ‘Whose Hoo’ project. Chairman Colin Davis said the money would help turn the magazine into a Heritage Centre with a café and modern toilets. Landlord Haven provides a 25-year lease along with grounds assistance, tools and drainage repair costs, while an artist named Johnny is creating a children’s interactive area inside the East Magazine, aiming to finish before the fort’s main open day.
Completed earlier phases of the project have weatherproofed several rooms, restored the Guard Room and rebuilt the glacis. New windows and doors were also installed in the East Wing Magazine. Further updates on the concrete grinding and water damage repairs will be posted on the Trust’s website as work progresses.
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