Architect: Long Blackledge Architects
Client: Museums of History
Location: Rouse Hill, NSW
Partridge is contributing structural engineering expertise to the conservation works at the state heritage listed Rouse Hill Estate, a property that holds over 150 years of layered history and cultural significance. The estate is managed by Museums of History NSW and continues to be an important cultural landmark.
The conservation works are part of our ongoing involvement with Museums of History NSW on the site which included previous conservation works to the Woolshed (2019) and Service Wing (2022).
Our involvement centres on stabilising and repairing the estate’s ageing structures in a way that preserves their authenticity while strengthening them for the future. Conservation projects of this scale require careful investigation, measured interventions, and close collaboration with heritage consultants to ensure that every solution respects both the original fabric and the site’s ongoing story.
Monitoring regimes were established for timber elements and masonry cracking that remain structurally sound but are showing signs of deterioration.
The scope of our work includes remediation of the timber structure forming the verandah which wraps around three sides of the building, repair of a failing brickwork lintel in the Service Wing, repair works to the Service Wing First Floor timber structure and seismic strengthening of the sandstone block chimneys.
The verandah works included splicing rotten timber posts and beams, and repair works to the base of the posts.
The seismic strengthening of the chimneys involved strengthening the chimneys with steel angles tied into the roof and attic floor structure. The new structure was carefully coordinated to be as visually unintrusive as possible (concealed with the loft space) while also maintaining access routes throughout the loft for ongoing / future maintenance works.
These works are planned and staged so that the estate can remain open to the public during the process, allowing continued engagement with the site even while essential structural works are being carried out.
Conservation engineering differs from conventional building projects. Each intervention must balance technical necessity with heritage values, recognising that the materials, connections, and details are irreplaceable parts of the estate’s fabric. We adopt the Burra Charter’s approach to “do as much as necessary to care for the place and to make it useable, but otherwise change as little as possible so that its cultural significance is retained.” At Rouse Hill Estate, our role is to apply structural engineering to support and extend the life of these original materials, rather than replace them, so that the site continues to tell its story for generations to come.
