MEMBERS of St John's Church Preservation Group are celebrating after repair work finally begins on the landmark Kates Hill church.

Following four years of fundraising and lengthy discussions to get the church re-opened, repair work is set to get underway on Wednesday on St John's Church when a lightning conductor will be fitted to the tower, while drains around the site will be cleared and flushed.

To mark the occasion a community countdown will kickstart the work at 10am, with people dressed in Victorian costume and a lookalike to the original church architect from 1838, all set to join in with the celebrations, which will be followed by refreshments.

Deb Brownlee chair of St John's Church Preservation Group, said: "We and our loyal supporters have waited a long time for this moment, but here we are at last and this is just the start. Hopefully the waterproofing works will be next and we have also just agreed to employ an architect to draw up plans for the restoration of the Lychgate."

Dr Carl Chinn, patron of the Preservation Group, said: "The group and their supporters have never wavered in their belief that against all the odds St John's will be restored and re-opened and I am delighted to see the dream starting to come true."

The church was originally closed in November 2002 on safety grounds but subsequent surveys showed the 170 year-old building is actually structurally safe and capable of repair.

For further information about St John's Church Preservation Group, email savestjohnschurch@hotmail.co.uk or by visit the drop in centre in St John's Road, Kates Hill.