Extra staff sought for new Dudley wedding venue
Extra staff are being recruited at Dudley's new register office, which is opening in a Grade II-listed building housing two chapels, to cope with an expected increase in demand.
Dudley Council says it has already received a great deal of interest from people interested in holding a ceremony at Lye and Wollescote Chapels.
The building, in Cemetery Road, Lye, which houses identical Anglican and non-conformist chapels, is being converted into a venue for civil ceremonies.
West Midlands Historic Buildings Trust has secured a £1 million grant from the Heritage Lottery Fund to carry out the work.
Once complete, the building will be leased to Dudley Council to be used as a register office.
It will have a waiting lobby and two reception areas, as well as a wedding ceremony room and an office for staff.
The council is now looking to take on up to three new registration officers to work at Lye and at Priory Hall, Dudley.
Philip Tart, Dudley Council's strategic director of resources and transformation, said: "Priory Hall is an extremely popular wedding venue and we have already had a great deal of interest from people keen to get married at our new venue in Lye, once it's open.
"We're not yet taking bookings for Lye, but know we need to recruit to fulfil both the existing, and future demand."
The venue will be used for marriages, citizenship ceremonies, naming ceremonies, civil partnership ceremonies and for wedding vow renewals.
The building, which dates back to 1878, has been closed for the past 30 years after falling into disrepair.
The chapel was used for Anglican and non-conformist purposes when it opened.
The nonconformist chapel was closed in the 1970s and the Church of England chapel closed following a fire in 1993, which caused minor damage to the inside of the building.
It is built with brick and has a slate roof with a central brick-built spire.
The West Midlands Historic Buildings Trust is a charity dedicated to the conservation of buildings.
Speaking about the project, chairman Bob Tolley said: "We will not just preserve, but conserve this amazing building and put it to a sustainable new use."
There had been fears that the building could be lost forever when the Heritage Lottery Fund turned down the first bid for funding because of a shortage of cash.
But the group's second application for money was supported by heritage chiefs who recognised the building's importance.
