Waterfall restored on Kidderminster Great Wall to honour Covid victims

Longtime residents of Kidderminster might remember the original waterfall, which was a feature of the 320-metre-long wall along The Ringway for over 10 years until it was decommissioned in 1986.

The waterfall on Kidderminster's 'Great Wall' has been restored 35 years after it was decommissioned. Photo by Colin Hill

Now, thanks to community donations and funding from local councillors, the waterfall has been restored as a permanent tribute to coronavirus victims and the heroes still working on the frontline of the pandemic.

Tony Bierne, clerk of Kidderminster Town Council, which has agreed to take over the water feature's maintenance, said: "We tied in the reopening of the waterfall with the anniversary of the coronavirus lockdown.

"The waterfall was decommissioned in 1986 and became hidden by ivy, but a few people who remembered it came up with the idea of restoring it as a lasting tribute.

Fred Holland and Mike Loftus took part in a minute silence as a mark of respect for the Wyre Forest residents who have lost their lives to coronavirus. Photo by Colin Hill

"Funds have been raised in the local community and by councillors who contributed money from their divisional funds, and the town council has agreed to look after it going forwards.

"The town council would like to express its sincere condolences to those who have lost loved ones during the pandemic, and we also wanted to find a way to honour those workers on the frontline of the pandemic."

The water feature was switched on following a minute silence at 12pm on Tuesday, March 23 to coincide with the one year anniversary of the start of the coronavirus lockdown.

Community campaigner and fundraiser Fred Holland came up with the idea to restore the waterfall as a tribute to Covid victims. Photo by Colin Hill

Present at the ceremony were local resident and diabetes campaigner Fred Holland, who was one of the people behind the idea for the Covid memorial, plus representatives from the town council and Kidderminster Civic Society, which successfully campaigned to secure Grade II listed status for the Great Wall last year.

The group was already putting together an application for listed status when the wall's designer, William Mitchell, passed away in January 2020, aged 94.

Civic Society member Michael Loftus said: "It is really good to see the waterfall reinstated. This is what we conceived when we first talked about applying for listed status.

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"The waterfall was really important to William Mitchell. He did a lot of work in his early days on housing estates and he was really keen that the community should have some engagement in what he built.

"I sent a photograph of the waterfall to one of William Mitchell's daughters, who I have been in touch with over the last couple of years, and she was thrilled.

"She said he would have thought it was wonderful."

New lighting has also been installed and the wall will be lit up periodically to show off the restored water feature.