LUDLOW locals will get to have their say on issues such as empty shops and unrestored collapsed church wall at a meeting next month.

The Ludlow Residents group will be holding a public meeting at Ludlow women’s centre on March 2, with parliamentary candidate Chris Naylor and representatives from housing group Connexus as well as a host of local politicians, business owners and activists all expected to be in attendance.

The group was first founded on Facebook by Councillor Darren Childs in November 2023 with the aim of giving locals a way to express their concerns about issues such as housing, parking and the problems facing small businesses in the town.

Coun Childs said he decided to establish the group after hearing of one local experiencing difficulty reporting a problem with the former Costa premises in Castle Street.

On seeing that there was not an existing local issues forum that he found satisfactory, he created the residents’ group to allow people living in and around the town to publicly bring matters to the attention of other locals as well as elected officials.

The group quickly gained traction, accumulating over 350 members in its first month and catching the attention of news outlets such as BBC Radio Shropshire.

A significant milestone in the groups’ progress came on January 13, when they held their first public meeting, with more than 70 people showing up to make their views on local matters known according to Councillor Andy Boddington.