A set of miners' lamps that were removed from a Biddulph roundabout should be replaced with a suitable and sustainable memorial, a local councillor has said.

Biddulph Nub News reported recently how the lamps, which were located at the roundabout near the fire station in Biddulph, which connects St John's Road with Church Road and Princess Street, were removed by Staffordshire Moorlands District Council.

The lamps had fallen into a state of disrepair, and so were loaded onto the back of a truck and taken away.

The council had previously been urged to restore their lamps to their former glory, however they were unable to provide a guarantee that the lamps could be restored and replaced at the roundabout.

Now town and district Cllr Nigel Yates, who represents the Biddulph West Ward, has said the lamps should be replaced with a new memorial if they cannot be restored.

He said: "I'm confident that a suitable, and more sustainable mining memorial will be put back onto the roundabout.

"SMDC were responsible for the maintenance and ultimately the removal of the lamps, and I have to agree that they weren't removed sympathetically, and this will be raised with them.

"At the moment, I have requested that a delegation from Biddulph Town Council visits their storage place and is involved in their assessment - to see if they can be repaired, cleaned, treated and replaced."

He added: "I know it's a very emotive subject, Biddulph was built on coal, to a lesser extent, so was Cheadle, but Leek and the wider Staffs Moorlands wasn't, and I don't think they get it at all - look at the mess they have made of Victoria Business Park.

"Mining is in the blood of many residents of Biddulph, it's important we don't forget, especially as the world is moving away from coal.

"It was great to see so many people at the library buying a copy of Biddulph History Society's latest book - The Small Mines of Biddulph, I've already read mine cover to cover."

Nub News reported recently how new book by a local author which celebrates Biddulph's mining history was launched at the weekend.

The book, which is titled 'The Small Mines of the Biddulph Valley 1800 - 1980' was written by Jonathan Fryer and launched at Biddulph Library on Saturday.