A LONG-TERM Halstead health hazard is finally set to get some much needed repairs.

A Section of wall surrounding the Holy Trinity Church in Chapel Hill, Halstead, has been threatening to collapse for decades.

The wall is crooked, and has been increasing leaning over the footpath that runs perpendicular to it due to a nearby lime tree.

The wall was originally surveyed 14 years ago but no action was taken.

However, now Halstead Town Council is looking to finally have the wall put right.

Following proposals and consultancies by the Ed Morton Partnership, a Coggeshall based structural engineering consultancy company, the town council agreed to have the hazardous wall fixed.

The council took the decision to have wall fixed mostly due to the fact that the footpath is regularly used as a shortcut by schoolchildren at the Holy Trinity Primary School and that it posed a danger to the children.

A Halstead Town Council spokesman said: “Now that the wall is so obviously leaning, although it may not be leaning more than it was before, we are aware of the danger and we cant just leave it.

“So they’ve (Ed Morton Partnership) put forward a fairly practical solution to do something about it.

“This will involve first of all some drawings which are to be done by a local surveyor.

“The the Morton Partnership would lay out specifications of the work to be done at which point we can put that out appropriate builders.

“This isn’t a just a building a house job, this is restoring quite an old wall in a suitable manor in line with the history behind it.”

Following numerous town council meetings, action is now being taken with the council having surveys conducted design drawings created by Oswicks Property Professionals and the Ed Morton Partnership.

These drawings have now been submitted to builders and tender have been put out by the council.

The wall is most likely to be buttressed to stop any further leaning.

With money allocated to the project, it appears certain that repair work will go ahead.

However, it is not yet known when building work will start due to the coronavirus outbreak.

The council are set to have an update on the progress of getting the wall mended at their next virtual meeting in mid June.