Revamped Whitchurch museum needs urgent repairs

Councillors fear Whitchurch Heritage Centre, in St Mary's Street, is currently not weatherproof, and with winter just around the corner, vital work is needed to fix guttering and the roof.

Whitchurch Town Council, which is responsible for the building, has decided to assess the building's current state of repair.

It is not yet known how much the repairs will cost or when they would begin.

The issue was discussed at a meeting of the town council's Heritage Complex Committee in Whitchurch Civic Centre

Richard Thomas, temporary office manager for Whitchurch Town Council, said: "I think there is a problem with the guttering and with the roof, and there is a damp area in one of the top rooms.

"We need to make sure there are no missing slates and that the building is weather-proof.

"They are all minor things, but collectively they need addressing.

"The repairs are urgent – winter is coming.

"They have asked me to look at getting someone to check the current state of repair of the building and then they will consider the costs involved."

Councillor Peggy Mullock, mayor of Whitchurch and a committee member, said: "Our own staff have done quite a bit of work to it.

"But now drain pipes need replacing and the roof needs work as we had some lead stolen.

"We think some damage was caused by people climbing on the roof, but there's also general wear and tear."

She added: "We last spent £100,000 on revamping it in 2009 with money from the sale of the old district council's council houses."

Whitchurch Heritage Centre consists of the main exhibition hall and the Caldecott Gallery, and contains a range of artefacts dating back to the town's Roman occupation. The exhibition hall celebrates the work of Whitchurch clockmakers JB Joyce.

The building used to be a church, then a post office, but was transformed into the heritage centre in the late 1990s.

For more details about the centre visit the website www.whitchurch-heritage.co.uk.