A HISTORIC Dudley church faces financial ruin and ultimate closure if vital funds cannot be raised during the coronavirus lockdown.

Members of the St Johns Preservation Group, who care for the grade II listed church in Kates Hill, have launched an urgent appeal to raise cash to help continue its work to maintain the building.

The group's funds have been reduced to zero since the lockdown put a stop to their fundraising efforts and the group fear that if they cannot pay their bills they will be forced to hand over the keys to the building.

Deb Brownlee, chair of the group told the News said: "If we don't raise the money, when this is all over people will look around and think, where is St Johns? It would be a sad ending after all these years."

To raise money for immediate bills and to create a sustainable income stream to secure the future of the church, the group are asking supporters of the church to sign up as a Friend of St John's.

Each Friend is asked to make a monthly donation of £5, or £1 if they have been furloughed from work.

Deb hopes the future of the church can be secured if they can encourage at least 400 people to sign up as Friend to make monthly donations.

She added: "It isn't just the church building that is at stake. We also tend the graveyard which contains the grave of notables such as William Perry The Tipton Slasher, Mary Ann Mason, Hansons Beer family and Marion Richardson.

"We have an amazing volunteer team, recently nominated for the Queens Award for Volunteering. We hold numerous community events and services, and we have been maintaining and slowly restoring the grade II listed church. All this will be lost if we do not get sufficient Friends on board."

The Friends reopened the 179-year-old church in 2016 following a campaign after the church was closed in 2002 due to safety concerns.

The team, all made up volunteers, have worked tirelessly to bring the church into use for the community and to celebrate its history.

The group have big ambitions for the church, including the development of a nature reserve on the grounds with a land train, a cafe. a local history museum and opening the tower up to visitors.

Volunteers were in the process of creating a community centre in the church school rooms before the crisis halted their work.

Deb added: "St John's is the longest serving feature in Kates Hill that can be seen for miles around. There's hardly anyone in the area who is not touched by St John's in some way. It's an essential part of the community."

"It would be catastrophic for it to go before we really got going."

Black Country historian Dr Carl Chinn, who has been a patron of the group since 2009, is also backing the campaign to save the church.

He said: "The work and commitment of the group has been an inspiration, and saved an iconic and important Black Country church. Once gone these buildings cannot be replaced, and I urge people to step forward and become Friends, and save St John's once again."

To become a Friend of St Johns email savestjohnschurch@hotmail.co.uk or call 0752 218 4461.