'This should always be here for walkers' - Halfway House reopens on the Wrekin

And now the iconic Halfway House is going to be reopened to the public by the end of the month – but that’s just the beginning.

It’s been a real passion project for owner Sean Saward, 54, who used to love stopping off at the house when he lived in Trench more than 40 years ago.

Now he can finally see the first phase of his project almost complete. The shop at the back of the 300-year-old house will be reopened, paving the way for bigger and better things in the years to come.

The pavilion is expected to be reopened by next summer, and Sean hopes that he’ll be able to provide a much requested bar for visitors to The Wrekin.

Beyond that he is looking to provide shepherd huts for visitors to stay on the hill and magical Christmas grotto visits for families.

Sean, who lives in Cambridgeshire, had a call from his mother to let him know the house had gone up for sale three years ago, and found he just couldn’t get the idea of buying it out of his head.

“I had fond childhood memories of it. Mum remembered it from when we went up, and I thought it was way too big a project for me. Three days later I was still thinking about it so I came up to see it.

“I was saddened to see how bad it had become. The place was about to fall down – there were plants growing out of the wall.

“I didn’t have a vision for how I wanted it to be. I saw it as a blank canvas. There’s so much that had to come down, that when you’d done that you could look at it again.”

Sean said, first and foremost, the Halfway House would be a place for the walkers.

He’s already had requests for corporate events and wedding receptions, but he said that he would never close the area to those travelling up the Wrekin.

From near dilapidation to being strong enough to last hundreds of years more, Sean sees saving the house as his legacy.

“The Halfway House shouldn’t be owned by a private person,” he said. “It should be open to the public. It’s always been here for people walking up the Wrekin, and it always should be. I want the public to approve of what I’ve done. Approval has been amazing. Every day, so many people say what a fantastic job and that they’re pleased it’s being done the way it has.”

More than 3,000 people have given their views on what services should be offered at Halfway House. Some of those ideas, such as a bar or places to sleep, could be implemented within the next two years. Others were a little bit more unusual.

“Some people suggested a jacuzzi out the back,” Sean said. “Another person suggested a sushi bar. The majority of people all want the same. Cold refreshments, everybody wants ice cream and everybody wants a bacon butty.”

Sean took on the project because of fond childhood memories, but it hasn’t always been an easy job.

A fire started by young vandals last year almost saw the pavilion destroyed and as building continued a lot of things have been found that have needed to have been fixed.

But with plans to re-open to the public from the end of this month, the first phase in Sean’s “never-ending” project is nearly complete. It’s taken three years of hard work.

“This has definitely been from the heart not the head,” he said.

“I’ve put in a lot of investment, I’ve sacrificed a lot.

“There were times when the build has gone wrong and I’ve sat back and thought I’ve taken on too big a monster.

“It’s amazing, if you set your sights and you just expect the worse, sometimes you can be pleasantly surprised.You find yourself getting to the end point. It’s been a tough road.”

Logistically doing anything up here is not the same as doing a project ‘downstairs’. Getting products delivered, getting tradespeople who are willing to work up here is tough.

“Now the hard part is done. Looking forward it shouldn’t be as taxing.”