Burntwood Town Council have been awarded over £180,000 from the Government’s Community Ownership Fund to renovate and modernise Chase Terrace Methodist Church, transforming it into a Community Centre for residents.

Following a successful, locally driven campaign last year to save the building for community use, the Town Council purchased the former church in December, and received confirmation last week that their bid to the Community Ownership Fund was successful.

The Fund has awarded £71 million to 231 projects across England and is available to support communities to take ownership of assets which are at risk of being lost.

Cllr Darren Ennis, Leader of Burntwood Town Council said:

“After a lot of hard work and determination from residents, Councillors and Officers, we are absolutely delighted with the amazing news that Burntwood Town Council has been awarded this funding. Saving this much-loved local building and protecting it for generations to come is great news for the community and represents a significant investment in our town.

We have a strong voluntary sector in Burntwood, and we can’t wait to welcome local groups and organisations to the building.”

Cllr Sue Woodward, Chair of Policy and Resources Committee said:

“It’s been a long road and at times a hard one, but this is such good news for our town. We’ve had a number of unwavering supporters all along the way who, along with former Church members, never doubted that we would reopen as a community venue in the end. We also had around 1000 local residents sign the petition in a very short time period to get the building designated as an Asset of Community Value. This truly has been a real community effort and I thank every single person who has been behind the project.

We’re ready to go ahead now to get another community space that our town needs and deserves. I know it’s going to be something we can all be proud of and I can’t wait for it all to start happening now.”