Landmark love locks installed at their new home

Volunteers have begun installing thousands of love locks at their new home after they were removed from a landmark bridge.

The padlocks were previously attached to Weir Bridge in Bakewell but were taken off for repair work.

Derbyshire County Council intended to melt the locks down but agreed to give them to a campaign group following public outcry.

About 140 people have now offered to help attach the locks to a new Love Locker structure at Grade II-listed stately home Thornbridge Hall.

Emma Harrison, who owns Thornbridge Hall, said the start of the installation, which began on Thursday, was an exciting day.

"It's the first big day of activity, our first volunteers are starting to put the locks on the brand new wires," she said.

"Loads and loads of people have been in touch with me to tell me that they're really happy their locks have been rescued and they can't wait to be reunited."

One family had been in touch because their five-year-old son loved the bridge, but had since died of cancer.

"They're going to come up here and re-thread the locks as a tribute to their son," Emma said.

"Then, on the other side, I've got people who put a lock on but since have been dumped, and they're bringing their hacksaw up to chop it off."

The bridge was built over the River Wye about 25 years ago, but locks first appeared in 2012.

Its official name is Weir Bridge, but it became known as the Love Lock Bridge due to the vast numbers of padlocks that were attached.

However, the love locks were divisive.

For some, they were a sentimental token of love or a way of remembering people who had died.

For others, they were an unwelcome eyesore and a blight on the town.

The council eventually decided to remove the locks to do maintenance of the bridge, and change the design so more could not be added in future.

A councillor claimed doing so would "improve public safety" because of the risk of "grazes and cuts from protruding locks".

The authority said it had tried and failed to find an alternative location for the locks to be moved to.

But Richard Young, from the Save the Love Locks at Bakewell campaign group, stepped in and found a home for the locks at Thornbridge Hall, about three miles away from the locks' original location.

Teams of eight volunteers will be working each day to thread the locks.

Those helping include Rose Flack, who said it was "a brilliant idea".

"I think it's bringing the community together," she said.

"We started early this morning. We're threading each individual lock on to lots of cables, so that everybody will be able to come and find their own lock."

Emma believes there could be about 60,000 love locks in total.

"The estimate that people have been making is there were 40,000 locks on that bridge and they weighed maybe five tonnes, but I think they've underestimated it," she said.

"We've started weighing and checking. I think there's more likely to have been 60,000 locks, maybe seven and a half tonnes."

Once the locks are all on the wires, they will be strung up on the Love Locker structure, which is currently being built and is due to open on 14 February for Valentine's Day.

"I'm going to run a competition," said Emma.

"The first person to turn up and find their lock gets to ring a bell and I'll give them a case of beer."

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