Water supply for church to cost £76,000

Worshippers in Telford have reacted with horror after learning it could cost £76,000 to get a toilet installed at their church.

Holy Trinity Church in Oakengates, Telford, is virtually unchanged since it was built in 1855 and has no running water or toilet.

The Reverend Matthew Stafford, from the church, who is leading a £250,000 revamp scheme to bring the building up to date, has been told by Severn Trent Water it will cost £76,037 for the church to be connected to the sewers.

Today, Mr Stafford vowed to fight as best he can to find alternative contractors to carry out the work - at a cheaper price.

He said they cannot afford to stump up almost a third of their budget for the works for the toilets.

“The congregation have been mortified Severn Trent wants to charge this much,” he said. “But now we are trying to explore alternatives and contacting other contractors to see if they can do the job cheaper.

“There’s no toilet whatsoever at the church at the moment. It’s embarrassing.

“We have weddings, funerals and christenings here, and when people say ‘where’s the toilet?’ I have to say we haven’t got one.

“We are excluding people from coming to church because we’ve not got basic facilities.

“I really want the work to be done this year.”

The revamp project is being funded by the sale of the church hall, on an adjacent site.

The money will be used to create modern facilities for the whole community to use, including a meeting room, kitchen and a toilet.

Severn Trent Water has said customers have to contribute towards the cost of any new sewer or lateral drain to serve a non-domestic site.

The firm said the amount is dependent on several factors, including sewer cost and the number or size of any properties served by the new sewer.

By Lizzie Yates