A MUCH-LOVED sculpture is looking as good as new after parents got together to help restore it.

Purton artist Gordon Dickinson used his magic to repair the statue called Together, which has been located at Westlea Primary School for nearly 20 years. 

The 62-year-old was contacted by member of the parent teacher association Nina Cope from Rodbourne who had appealed on behalf of the group in May to find the artist who created it.

The group ended up raising the £400 needed to cover the costs after setting up a Gofundme page and getting support from the community.

Mum-of-two Nina said: “It was overwhelming to see the wider community donate to the GoFundMe. The sculpture has meaning to a lot of people, and it was nice to see they wanted to contribute.

“The response has been incredible. It looks brand new again. We are going to put a little fence about 30cm high around to preserve it as it’s almost 20 years old now. The school are very grateful the PTA took the time and care to have it restored. Hopefully, it will see another 20 years in good condition.”

Parents raised £138 on Gofundme and organised a Wacky Wear Day where the children wore the wackiest outfits to raise £220.

The PTA topped up the remainder to reach £400.

Nina’s children Charlie and Maysie are in Year 1 and Year 5 at the school. She said: “They have both gone back and couldn’t believe how new it looks.

“I am more than happy with it. I couldn’t picture what the end result would be but it’s definitely more than I expected. Gordon did a fantastic job, and we are so pleased we found him to do it.”

Gordon, who started as an apprentice in 1976 and has been painting and sculpting since then, took a whole day to restore the sculpture.

He said: “The only challenge I faced was getting my body to work like it did 17 years ago.

“I posted a film of the finished sculpture on social media and got a good response, with lots of positive comments. I am really pleased with the result.

“It’s always nice to bring a piece of work back to life again, so that people can enjoy it for a few more years.”

He said: “I needed to sand the surface of the sculpture to remove any loose rust and flaking paint.

“I then welded a few plates in the holes that appeared. I then used a filler to level off any dents or rough patches, this needed sanding down ready for painting.

“I finished it off with four coats of black Hammerite paint then I added some gold and copper to recreate its original finish.”