AN ANCIENT church with links to the Titanic is seeking consent to replace part of its roof following a major theft earlier this year.
The 13th Century St Peter's Church at Bramshaw was targeted two months ago when raiders removed a large amount of copper covering the top of the nave.
The rest of the copper is said to be nearing the end of its working life.
Now church members are asking the New Forest National Park Authority for permission to re-roof the nave with terne-coated stainless steel, which has a low resale value.
St Peter's contains a memorial to a group of parishioners who died aboard the Titanic during her maiden voyage from Southampton to New York in 1912.
Charles Davies, Percy Deacon, William Deacon, Stanley Hickman, Leonard Hickman, Lewis Hickman and Ambrose Hood were planning to begin a new life in Canada. They were among more than 1,500 people who perished when the Titanic struck an iceberg and sank.
Thieves raided St Peter's on April 3 and stole about a third of the copper covering the nave roof.
The planning application says: "In order to protect the building from the weather, a local builder kindly provided plastic sheeting as temporary protection.
"This appears to be effective at keeping the weather out of the building. However, this cannot be guaranteed for too long.
"As the copper is approaching the final years of its life, and the material is not intrinsically significant, the church would like to utilise a different material to re-cover the roof.
"Lead would be an obvious choice but is too valuable and attractive to would-be thieves.
"Modern sheet materials are not thought to be appropriate in appearance and are not as long-lived as metal roof products. Zinc is a possible option, but terne-coated stainless steel is the material now proposed.
"This approach is in line with guidance provided by Historic England and the Church of England in situations where repeated theft is likely.
"Terne-coated stainless steel is durable but has a negligible re-sale value. It is also very difficult to lift and remove once laid. Once the initial ‘shiny’ appearance weathers away, the overall appearance is similar to a lead roof covering."
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