A5 roadworks suspended for Oswestry proms night

The British Ironwork Centre, near Oswestry, organised a Proms in the Park evening several months ago and is expecting hundreds of summer revellers to enjoy the spectacular.

However, overnight closures on the A5 had threatened to put the evening in jeopardy with fears that the concert audience and the orchestra would be unable to get to the centre, which exits onto the A5.

Now Highways England has confirmed that roadworks on the scheme will not go ahead this weekend. Chairman of the centre, Clive Knowles, said he was absolutely delighted.

“We have done such a lot of planning for what is going to be a great night,” he said.

“The marquee is up and we have ordered a pallet of strawberries and a pallet of ice-cream.

“That is an awful lot of perishable food that would have gone to waste it we could not have held the event.

“We can now go ahead with the final preparations and people can book their tickets safe in the knowledge that there will not be any roadworks.”

A Highways England spokesman said: “Firstly, we wish to apologise to the British Ironwork Centre for not getting back sooner to clarify the situation.

“The good news is we can confirm that there will be no works from this scheme during the weekend of the event. We wish all concert goers to the Proms in the Park a good time and a safe journey.”

The roadworks, from 8pm until 6am, began last week and are due to last until July 7.

A 13-mile stretch of the A5 between the Mile End roundabout and the Churncote roundabout is affected by the overnight closure.

Drivers face a diversion via Four Crosses and Llandrinio although many motorists are searching out their own way around the trunk road via country lanes.

The Wrexham Symphony Orchestra will be the highlight of the show, playing an array of classical favourites and films from the show.

There will be pre-show performances from the Clwyd Clippers and Lilly Whitehurst and the evening will culminate in a firework finale.

“Guests will enjoy a glass of prosseco and strawberries and are encouraged to take along a picnic hamper and a blanket to sit on an enjoy the spectacle,” Mr Knowles said.