KEY work to restore Brierley Hill's war memorial has been completed in time for Remembrance Sunday.

Restoration to the memorial involved work to the statue and surrounding railings, which is in place for the memorial's centenary this weekend.

It is the first phase of improvements as part of the Brierley Hill Heritage Action Zone works.

The national government funded project will see a number of buildings in the town restored to their original character.

The second phase of works will see landscaping works carried out on the memorial gardens next year.

Improvements in the first phase include interpretive panels telling the story of local people who lost their lives in both world wars and conflicts since.

Dudley South MP Mike Wood recently met with Historic England's Regional Director for the Midlands to discuss the ongoing work.

Mike Wood said: “I am so pleased to see work to repair and restore Brierley Hill War Memorial progressing so well. The restored memorial will stand as a proud and powerful reminder of the men whose names are carved on it, and as key focal point for local people to reflect on the heritage of Brierley Hill.

“These works just wouldn’t have been possible without the £1.8million of Heritage Action Zone funding which we made the case for, and I really want to thank the local community for being so involved with this project.”

Historic England's Regional Director for the Midlands, Eilis Scott, said: "As we approach Remembrance Tide and the 100th anniversary of Brierley Hill's War Memorial, we wanted to update Mike Wood on the recently completed restoration work at the site. New interpretative panels are an important complementary feature, telling the story of local people who lost their lives during the First and Second World Wars, the Korean War, Cyprus Emergency and Malayan Emergency.

"The Memorial restoration project is part of Historic England's wider commitment to supporting the regeneration of Brierley Hill through our £1.8million Brierley Hill High Street Heritage Action Zone. We're pleased to have had an opportunity to discuss with Mike the impact that this work is making on the surrounding community."