Repair work on the 15th century beacon tower in the Burton Dassett Hills Country Park has been completed by Warwickshire County Council.

The project was delayed in 2021 after bats were found hibernating in the tower's domed roof.

Work was paused between April and June whilst WCC waited for the two brown long-eared bats to leave of their own accord.

But with the work resumed, the last nine months have been spent restoring the tower as closely to its original condition as possible.

"A lot of time and care has been taken throughout the project to restore the beacon tower as sympathetically as possible back to its original state," said project manager Martin Lewis.

"This has included fixing erosion on the Southeast side of the tower from long-term wind impact, repairing cracks and removing unstable bulges in the walls, to replacing non-breathable mortar with a new mortar that is more appropriate and also more in keeping with the colour and texture of the stone.

"The team have also worked incredibly hard to restore the domed roof of the tower, applying a new limed-based render capping to the dome and ensuring it is watertight.

"The entranceway to the tower has been filled in with stone to protect its interior, however a gap has been purposely left above the doorway lintel so that bats can continue to roost inside the tower for years to come."

The beacon tower is one of only two historical monuments in the county to be managed by WCC (the other being Chesterton windmill), and since 1952 has been a Grade-II listed building.

The beacon in the Burton Dassett Hills was likely built by Lord of the Manor Sir Edward Belknap in the late 15th century.

There are three main theories as to its original use:

• A beacon to pass important fire signals to other beacons in the surrounding area
• A windmill/tower mill, or a look-out tower
• A Warrener's lodge, the home of a man who protected the local rabbit population from poachers, as rabbits were valuable in medieval times for their meat and fur.

"The 15th century beacon tower at Burton Dassett Hills is a small but important part of Warwickshire's history, and a great focal point to educate and inform visitors about the surrounding 100-acre site, which has been a country park since 1971 and includes ironstone quarry remains from the late 19th century and a nearby 12th Century All Saints Church," added Cllr Heather Timms.

"As warmer spring weather is fast approaching, now is a great time to visit the Burton Dassett Hills to see the beacon tower restored to its former glory, and with fantastic views across Stratford-on-Avon District it will continue to stand tall to be enjoyed by the people of Warwickshire for now and future generations."