Cradley Heath church clock begins restoration journey in Cumbria
The first stages of a mission to restore a former church clock has begun.
The clock dial from the former St Luke's Church, in Cradley Heath, has been taken 170 miles from the Black Country to Dacre, a small village near Penrith in Cumbria, where it will be restored to working order over the next few weeks.
St Luke's Church closed in October 2014 after almost 170 years of worship because of escalating repair costs.
After demolition of the church, a number of assets were sold to churches outside of the Black Country, but the Cradley Heritage Project have worked to ensure the clock dial will remain as a landmark in Cradley Heath.
The group raised money through concerts, parachute jumps and marathon runs amongst other projects.
James Brookes, from the group, said: "It's been a passion play for a lot of people and the community has been really involved in the fundraising.
"The whole community is looking forward to seeing it restored as part of St Peter's Church and it will be a really community asset when it is full working."
The group hope to have the dial restored in St Peter's Church by Christmas and fully working by Spring 2020 and are continuing to fund raise to install the clock once it returns from Cumbria.
