A LEADING county councillor has called for the archives of composer Edward Elgar, described as a vital part of the county's heritage, to be kept in Worcestershire.

Cllr Lucy Hodgson spoke out after learning that the Elgar Foundation is proposing to move the archive from the Elgar birthplace museum at Lower Broadheath, near Worcester, to the British Library in London.

She said: "Worcestershire is the county where Elgar was born, lived, died and is buried. It is also the place where he gained so much of his musical inspiration. These archives were first deposited with the county record office in 1966 by his daughter. They were then transferred to the newly-refurbished Birthplace Museum in 2002.

"In my opinion, Worcestershire Archive and Archaeology Service, the county repository for historic archives and records since 1947, one of the first archives in the country to be accredited by the National Archives and the winners of the prestigious Record Keepers of the Year award in 2017, are the clear choice to house these archives.

"It would truly be a shame to see this piece of history that means so much to this county be taken away from Worcestershire, a place where Elgar is honoured and celebrated each year at the Elgar Festival and a place that obviously meant so much to Sir Edward Elgar and his family.

"There are many scholars and others who care very much about Elgar, and who come to Worcestershire to carry out research in the archives, and we want them to keep coming here, not to go to London.

"I understand that the foundation is holding a meeting next week to discuss the proposal."

The Elgar Foundation has been contacted for comment.

The Worcestershire Archive and Archaeology Service is based at the Hive in Worcester, an internationally-acclaimed building with strong rooms built to the latest professional standards with the room to house such an important collection.

The team at the Hive already hold and promote nationally and internationally important archives. An example of the hundreds of thousands of documents in their care is William Shakespeare's marriage bond.

Thanks to the work of the team, this document, with two others relating to the playwright, has been recognised by the United Nations Educational, Scientific and Cultural Organization as part of an internationally-significant collection.