TOWN councillors are facing big bills for repairs to the Manor House in Dawlish.

More than £23,000 needs to be spent dealing with dry rot in two of the rooms and £12,500 to replace the Grade II listed Georgian building’s canopy.

But the future of the conservatory to the rear of the building still hangs in the balance due to the listed status.

Total costs could run to more than £75,000 depending on what decision is reached although there is a budget for ongoing work.

Built in about 1811, the Manor House is home to the town council offices and provides rooms for rent to other organisations and groups.

Concerns about the canopy had led to the closure of the footpath along that side of the building and it is currently being propped up from underneath.

Removing the canopy would need listed building consent which councillors had been told could not be guaranteed.

Replacing it like for like will be agreed as it does not constitute a material change to the structure which has doors into the council chamber and room 2.

However, the Manor House and Riverside Centre committee has deferred a final decision on the conservatory.

One of the issues is whether to double-glaze the hard-wood conservatory windows.

A report to councillors explained: ‘Although on the face of it the installation double glazing is a positive step toward achieving greater energy efficiency and sustainability, the conservatory is unheated and is separated from the heated parts of the building by thick masonry wall which act as thermal buffers.

‘Furthermore, the conservatory is not a permanently occupied space it only acts as a link between rooms. ‘It is therefore questionable as to how much of an impact double glazing would have.

‘An alternative solution would be to retain the conservatory as single glazing and keep the doors from the council chamber and room 2 into the conservatory closed during the winter months.

‘This way heat loss through the conservatory is minimal.

‘The doors in question could be draft proofed and the ironmongery changed, where necessary, so as to maintain two-way traffic and means of escape in emergency.’

The matter has been deferred pending the outcome of a listed building consent application being submitted for a double glazed hard-wood conservatory together with either aluminium timber joist cladding, or all-aluminium joists.

The delay follows an engineers report which identified that for double-glazing, the foundations must be either underpinned, or rebuilt entirely to support the weight of the new glass.

Experts say the additional weight of upgrading from single to double glazing could result in ‘structural instability’.

Councillors would like to have double-glazing but if consent is not given, single-glazing is the only option.

A further complication is that if members agree to have the foundations underpinned or rebuild the conservatory to allow for double-glazing, it could be that ultimately the new glazing would not be allowed.

However, if the response from listed building consent is that double-glazing can be put in, then the committee can consider which whether to underpin the foundations or rebuild the entire conservatory.