Fire-damaged stately home at risk

The building was badly damaged by fire in 1978

A stately home ruined by fire 29 years ago has been named among England's most at-risk buildings.

Astley Castle, in north Warwickshire, was badly damaged by a blaze in 1978 and £2m of public funding is needed to repair it, English Heritage said.

It was home to the Newdigate family in the 19th Century and is one of 19 at-risk buildings in Warwickshire and 35 in the West Midlands conurbation.

English Heritage said several other buildings were no longer at risk.

These include a Grade I-listed medieval basement, in Bayley Lane, Coventry, and a medieval row of houses in Spon End Terrace, Upper Spon Street, in the city.

The Grade II-listed menagerie The Woodlands, Combe Deer Park, in Combe Fields, Warwickshire, has been refurbished by its new owners.

New owners have also restored the 15th Century Grade II-listed Gorcott Hall, in Birmingham Road, Gorcott Hill, near Studley, Warwickshire.