Brick maker steps in to rebuild village church wall destroyed by reckless driver

The generosity of a North Yorkshire brick maker has helped a village church rebuild its historic wall after it was demolished by a reckless driver.

The York Handmade Brick Company, one of the largest independent brickmakers in the country, donated the bricks free of charge to St John’s Church in Minskip, near Boroughbridge.

This gift has enabled the church wall to be completely rebuilt and, accordingly to church warden Robert Beaumont, it looks exactly as it did before the accident.

He commented: “We were absolutely devastated when we saw the extensive damage the out-of-control car had done to our wall. It was heartbreaking.

“As a small church, we were struggling to find the funds to restore the wall to its former glory, so this gift from York Handmade has made all the difference.

“The reckless driver and his passengers left the scene as soon as they could, taking their smashed-up car with them, but they left their registration plate embedded in the wall.

“They were subsequently traced by the police, but no one admitted to being the driver, meaning a conviction would be hard to achieve.

“This left the church council feeling very angry indeed and we are currently pursuing compensation. But the generosity of York Handmade has improved our mood, underlining the fact that kind acts often follow selfish and destructive ones.”

David Armitage, chairman of York Handmade Brick, which is based in Alne, near Easingwold, commented: “We are absolutely delighted to help St John’s Church.

“As luck would have it, we had some bricks which almost exactly matched the 19^th century church wall. Looking at the wall now, I think it’s impossible to tell where our bricks begin and end.”