We’re proud to announce that Chris Sedgeman Scaffolding has been featured on Hidden Treasures of the National Trust (Series 3, Episode 6) for our specialist access work at Lanhydrock House in Cornwall, where a once-in-a-generation conservation project is underway to restore an extraordinary Jacobean ceiling.
Set on the edge of Bodmin Moor, Lanhydrock’s Long Gallery houses one of Britain’s most ebullient ceilings—a spectacular 35-metre-long, 8-metre-wide plasterwork masterpiece dating back to the early 17th century. Commissioned by the Robartes family between 1621–1651, this ceiling is twice the size of a tennis court and filled with intricate mythical and biblical scenes. Over 400 years old, it’s one of the finest surviving examples of its kind from the Jacobean era.
To support its conservation, our team designed and installed a bespoke birdcage scaffold that filled the entire gallery, giving heritage experts the stable, secure platform they needed to carry out delicate repairs to the original plasterwork. What made this scaffold truly special was not just the precision of the installation, but the experience it enabled. For the first time in the gallery’s history, visitors could walk directly beneath and alongside the ceiling—face-to-face with its detail. As Liz Green, Senior National Curator for Architectural History at the National Trust, remarked in the episode:
“ Up there on the scaffolding it’s a kind of revelation.”
The public were able to experience the ceiling at eye level—something that had never been possible before—bringing new appreciation to a hidden treasure suspended high above for centuries.
At Chris Sedgeman Scaffolding, we’re proud that our work is trusted by the National Trust and heritage professionals across the UK. Our systems are designed with safety, conservation, and public engagement in mind—helping preserve the past while making it accessible in the present.
Watch our scaffold in action and learn more about the restoration in Hidden Treasures of the National Trust, streaming now on BBC IPlayer Series 3 | Episode 6
https://www.bbc.co.uk/iplayer/episode/m002cg6w/hidden-treasures-of-the-national-trust-series-3-6-raising-the-roof