Carl leads church campaign
The campaign to save a crumbling Dudley church has received a boost after a leading historian agreed to act as patron of a group trying to save it from destruction. The campaign to save a crumbling Dudley church has received a boost after a leading historian agreed to act as patron of a group trying to save it from destruction. Professor Carl Chinn has agreed to act as patron to the St John's Church Preservation Group, which is attempting to save the Kates Hill building from demolition. Professor Chinn agreed to take on the role after highlighting the plight of the church and the graveyard in his column in the Express & Star and during his regular radio appearances. The church was closed in 2002, and the preservation group was formed three months ago to highlight the condition of the building and to raise funds to repair and reopen it for worship and community use. The group has already attracted almost 800 members from the local area, all over the UK and from abroad. Professor Chinn, a direct descendant of a brother of the legendary William Perry, better known as the Tipton Slasher, who is buried in the graveyard, said: "I am honoured to become patron of the St John's Church Preservation Group and fully support its aims and objectives." Read the full story in the Express & Star.
The campaign to save a crumbling Dudley church has received a boost after a leading historian agreed to act as patron of a group trying to save it from destruction.
Professor Carl Chinn has agreed to act as patron to the St John's Church Preservation Group, which is attempting to save the Kates Hill building from demolition. Professor Chinn agreed to take on the role after highlighting the plight of the church and the graveyard in his column in the Express & Star and during his regular radio appearances.
The church was closed in 2002, and the preservation group was formed three months ago to highlight the condition of the building and to raise funds to repair and reopen it for worship and community use.
The group has already attracted almost 800 members from the local area, all over the UK and from abroad.
Professor Chinn, a direct descendant of a brother of the legendary William Perry, better known as the Tipton Slasher, who is buried in the graveyard, said: "I am honoured to become patron of the St John's Church Preservation Group and fully support its aims and objectives.
"With its commanding view of the Black Country from historic Kates Hill, St John's is a church that calls out to us of the importance of religious buildings in the life of the industrial West Midlands.
"In the graveyard are buried many of the people who transformed the Black Country into one of the greatest manufacturing regions in the world," added Prof Chinn.
"They deserve better than to be left in a place that has almost become wild, and their relatives deserve the opportunity to be able to pay their respects in a fitting place.
"There are concerns across the Black Country and Birmingham about the state of many churches, chapels and graveyards, and if the preservation group is successful it can act as a beacon of hope for other campaigners."
The group will hold an official inauguration event on the Old School House car park, next to the church in St John's Road on November 15 at 6.15pm.
For more information about the group, log on to www.savestjohnschurch. zoomshare.com
