New bid to 'get it done' after 'open wound' of town wall collapse more than a decade ago

Colin Richards MBE, a renowned expert in historic buildings, has agreed to take up the volunteer reins of the Town Walls Trust and says the issue 'needs to be sorted.'

Mr Richards' family company of heritage experts CJR Heritage Services has recently won a prestigious Europa Nostra award 2024 for the conservation and adaptive re-use of the 14th century fortified church at Alma Vii in Transylvania.

Mr Richards became town walls trust chairman following the death of the highly respected Richard Cundall, whose funeral will be taking place at St Laurence's Church in Ludlow on September 6.

Mr Richards paid tribute to his predecessor for making a "tremendous contribution to the cultural and social life of Ludlow."

The trust had been “rested” under the auspices of Ludlow Civic Society under a belief that repair work had been programmed.

But with no start to the works on the horizon Mr Cundall and Mr Richards had revived the LTWT, engaged with all the trustees and received the patronage of Bill Klemperer, former head of archaeology for the West Midlands Region of Historic England.

Now as a volunteer chair Mr Richards is picking up the reins and finally try to find a way of getting the job done.

He was the historic environment manager for Shropshire Council between 2009 and 2014, including the dramatic collapse and its immediate aftermath.

A section of the town's medieval walls collapsed behind the parish church, on Upper Linney, behind St Laurence’s Church, in the early hours of February 18, 2013, damaging a car and several garages.