RENOVATION work has started on a Gornal windmill after it was awarded almost £40,000.

The Ruiton Windmill in Vale Street has scooped £39,650.91 after committee members made a successful bid to the Landfill Communities Fund through the Waste Recycling Environmental Fund (WREN).

Mill chairman, Councillor Ken Finch said he was delighted the project had secured the cash and that work had started immediately.The money is being put towards a new kitchen and courtyard entrance which will allow better access for the general public.

The windmill’s wooden doors are also being cladded and some of the windows are being replaced.

Councillor Finch added: “I’m really pleased that we have got this far. It has taken two and a half years to get this far and a lot of work.

“Building work started on Monday and is expected to take four to five weeks.

“We are having the courtyard relayed with Derbyshire stone, as it is a listed building we have to follow rules, but it will be easier for disabled visitors to gain access.”

Cllr Finch also paid tribute to the hard work of former committee secretary John Richards, a visiting lecturer at Dudley College, who died suddenly in August last year at the wheel of his car.

He said: “John did all the paperwork for this application. He was the machinery in it all.

“I feel now that we have carried on and are now where he would have liked us to be with the project.”