A REPLICA lift could be built on the side of Ledbury's Market House to give people an idea what the real thing would look like.

The mock-up is being suggested by the town council, before it decides whether to go ahead with the controversial plan.

The council meets at the Market House and has to provide disabled access to comply with new laws coming into effect in October next year.

The venue is also used for weddings. Access is currently by a steep staircase.

Last month, more than 7,000 people signed a petition against the installation of the modern staircase and lift at the 17th Century listed building.

The latest idea is for a lift that would be more in keeping with the original structure.

The scale and cost of the mock-up has yet to be decided, but Mayor Keith Francis said it was the next logical step to take the issue forward.

"It's so that people can see where it's going to go and what it would look like," he said.

Petition

However, news of the planned mock-up has angered Barry Jenkins, who was married at the Market Hall and who organised the petition last month.

He said it would be purely academic, as installing a lift would require the cutting of original beams, a move unlikely to be approved by planners.

"I don't want anything on the side of the Market House whatsoever," he said. "If the members of the council agree to the mock-up they are ignoring the petition and failing the people of Ledbury."

Lift companies have been approached by the council, but do not build mock-ups.

"We'll probably have to produce one ourselves," Coun Francis said, adding that alternative approaches had so far proved unsuccessful.

"We're still pursuing the idea of trying to get a chairlift, but we're not progressing very far with that. A number of people have come down and had a look at it and say it's a problem."

Councillors will meet on Thursday, September 4, to discuss the idea further.