Bailey Hill lodge renovation after metal theft damage

The lodge at Bailey Hill is to become home to a new custodian this summer

Work has started to renovate a lodge at a historic Flintshire landmark which suffered up to £35,000 damage after it was hit by metal thieves.

The 100-year-old building at Bailey Hill, Mold, will then be rented to a new gatekeeper to monitor the site of the town's Norman motte and bailey castle.

Thieves ripped up floors and ceilings in the lodge to steal copper piping.

Mold council will get the keys to the lodge from Flintshire council in June.

The town council has been working with residents to recognise the importance of Bailey Hill.

They want to make it more of a focal point for the town as it lies at the top of the high street.

Cultural festival

It includes a playground and bowling green as well as a gorsedd or stone circle used to mark the National Eisteddfod Welsh cultural festival when it was hosted in the town in the 1920s.

"It is the most important historical area in Mold," said the town's mayor, Geoff Collett.

The damage to the lodge in 2011 was estimated at between £20,000 and £35,000.

A consultant was hired to come up with proposals to develop Bailey Hill, including the lodge, to boost visitor numbers.

So far a heritage trail has been created and the site is also used as an open-air venue for June's annual Bailey Hill festival of culture.

Bailey Hill looks out over Mold from the top of the High Street