Did dodgy Victorian workmanship lead to chapel collapse?

As far as Victorian engineering goes, a chapel still standing after more than 180 years is testament to that era's building excellence.

And from the outside, Cottage Green Chapel in Camberwell seems to embody that - even if the paint is peeling and there are weeds in cracks in the brickwork.

Just around the corner from Burgess Park in Southwark, the chapel is used constantly by various community groups and a project to renovate it had been started by the owners, the Well Community Church.

But before they'd got past the planning stage, part of the roof came crashing down.

The church team first detected a problem when the cleaner couldn't get the door open one morning.

Part of the ceiling had fallen in, with cracks making a jigsaw of the rest.

The full height of the chapel had been divided horizontally in the past to make a more usable and energy-efficient space.

The first job was to get access, which they managed through a cupboard.

Julian Marriott, one of the congregation, said he found "several tonnes of rubble" because a large section of ceiling - complete with plaster, lathe and joists - had collapsed onto the one below.

"Thankfully we had quite a number of volunteers who came and mucked in and got it all out."

Climbing with him into the rafters, I was confronted by an enormous timber strut at an alarming angle, which should be attached to the roof.

Marriott, who has experience in the building trade, examined the cause of the collapse.

He found a lump of timber, which he said, "gave us evidence of what might have happened".

The end of a beam had snapped off, at the loading point it rested on the wall and joined to a strut supporting the roof.

Not only was the beam much narrower than others in the roof, it seemed the connecting bolt had been put in at an angle when it was constructed in 1844.

The end of the bolt was an inch from the edge of the timber, creating a weak point.

"It was poorly put together by somebody a long time ago," said Mr Marriott, "They either ran out of the right wood or someone made a decision that wasn't a good one."

So, dodgy Victorian engineering?

"It could have been somebody who wasn't being monitored enough with their drilling.

"You just don't know. I mean the Victorians built some amazing things that we still rely on today.

"But this bit didn't work out so well," Marriott said.

The church team contacted the building's insurer, at which point things became a bit bizarre.

Marriott said, "We've met with the loss adjuster and they have said quite clearly that the source of the problem is not something they cover.

"They literally said 'go back to the contractor', which is of course a little bit difficult."

Fixing the roof, he said, was going to be "complicated" and at the moment it is vulnerable.

Without help from the insurer, the Well Community Church has started a Raise the Roof emergency fundraiser.

Only then can they progress with plans to renovate the chapel and turn it into a modern community space and cafe.

Church leader Alison Murr said: "So much development has been happening in the area and we know that especially these days people are so wanting community.

"We'd love to have it beautifully restored so that it can be of much more benefit."

Cottage Green Chapel is one of the only heritage buildings in the area and the church hopes that this case of dodgy Victorian engineering will become a quirky bit of its history - rather than the end of an era.