A HEREFORDSHIRE church spire has inspired a new sculpture set to be at the heart of a new family-friendly housing estate.

The Edenstone Group commissioned Simon Probyn to create a piece of public art for its St Mary's Garden Village development, which sits off the A40 in Ross-on-Wye.

St Mary's Garden Village is being built by Edenstone Homes and Bluebell Homes, both part of the Edenstone Group.

It will eventually feature 290 homes and includes plans for walking and fitness trails with equipment, including a gym, a kick about area and cycle hire.

RELATED NEWS:

Hereford Times: A CGI showing the Spire sculpture at St Mary’s Garden Village A CGI showing the Spire sculpture at St Mary’s Garden Village

Mr Probyn said: "I used to live near Ross on Wye at Aston Crews and was familiar with St Mary's Church, which is a local landmark clearly visible from St Mary's Garden Village.

"The church spire was the inspiration behind my design, which I have called Spire."

It is expected to take around a month to build the sculpture from 600 individual pieces of mild steel which will be cut and welded together, then made so it winds upward to 15 feet tall.

OTHER NEWS:

Once finished, the sculpture will weigh around a tonne and take centre stage in the formal garden of the new community.

It is hoped the garden will be officially unveiled in time for the Queen's Platinum Jubilee Weekend on June 2 to June 5.

Mr Probyn, a self-taught sculptor, became a fulltime artist 10 year ago and rents a workshop in a farmer's barn near Ledbury, Herefordshire.

"I think this Spire with look completely at home at St Mary's Garden Village," he said.

"It mirrors the old town church Spire which can be seen. I hope the sculpture will give pleasure to the residents when they walk or sit in the formal garden."

He has worked extensively with landscape designers, collaborating in the design of award-winning gardens with members of The Royal Horticultural Society at Chelsea, Hampton Court Palace, and Malvern. His work is collected nationally and internationally.

Edenstone Group sales director Adele McCoy said Mr Probyn has nailed the brief, perfectly designing a bespoke sculpture that reflects the heritage of the area.

This comes as a positive for St Mary's Garden village after residents have been battling McDonald's plans for a new drive thru, which will sit beside and accessed through the housing area.