One of Warwickshire's most famous landmarks set to be returned to its former glory thanks to restoration work

Work is due to start this month on replacing the sails on the Grade I listed Chesterton Windmill, which is just outside Chesterton village and off the Fosse Way.

The iconic monument has stood on the site for hundreds of years and attracts thousands of people every year.

The wooden sails on the windmill were removed in 2021 due to safety concerns.

The county council’s planning application to replace the sails was given the go ahead by Stratford District Council in February.

Earlier this month fencing was then put around the windmill ahead of the work starting.

The new sails for the windmill are being built by Owlsworth Conservation at its site near Reading.

In January, Owlsworth Conservation completed all of the different components for the sails, including the four sail frames, the stocks, the metalwork, and lightening protection tape.

Site visit in December 2024

In December last year, Cllr Christopher Kettle (Warwickshire county councillor for Feldon) and Ayub Khan (Warwickshire County Council's head of libraries, heritage and culture, and registration service) visited the site to see the progress of the project, which included the windmill's stocks and sails.

Cllr Chris Kettle said: “The visit to Owslworth's site in December was a great opportunity to discuss with the team and observe first-hand the specialist skills required to create the stocks and sails for Chesterton Windmill.

“I could see that the restoration of the sails was in safe and knowledgeable hands, and it will be a great moment to witness the sails back on the windmill in 2025 so that it can stand proudly once again along Warwickshire's skyline.

“This current restoration builds on the previous major restoration of the Windmill in 1971, again by Warwickshire County Council, when my late father was the councillor for what is now the Feldon Division.”

At the December site visit, all of the whips, which attach to the stocks, had been morticed out ready for the sail bars, and all of the sails bars had been fitted into their sails frames.

Ayub Khan, added: “Chesterton Windmill is an iconic monument both in Warwickshire’s landscape and as part of our country’s history, and it was an exciting day speaking with the project team to understand how the frames of the sails are coming together.

"It won’t be long until the sails are back on the windmill and it’s going to be a very exciting day to watch their installation.”

The history of the site

Warwickshire County Council provided the following information about the history of the windmill site.

Chesterton Windmill is one of Warwickshire’s most famous landmarks. It has stood on a hilltop overlooking the village of Chesterton for nearly 350 years.

It was built around 1632 – 1633, probably by Sir Edward Peyton, who was Lord of the Chesterton Manor House. At this time John Stone, a pupil of Inigo Jones, was in Chesterton designing the new Manor House and he probably helped with designing the windmill as well.

The estate accounts at the Warwickshire County Record Office show that that the structure has always been a windmill, making it the earliest tower mill in England to retain any of its working parts.

The windmill was restored between 1965 and 1974 by Warwickshire County Council who are now the ‘guardians of the windmill’.