CAMPAIGNERS looking to rebuild a 100-year-old tram stop for the disabled to enjoy the seaside say demolition work could start soon.

The Tram Stop Shelter charity wants to dismantle the building at the bottom of Thorpe Hall Avenue, in Thorpe Bay, after raising £22,000 for the project since launching a fundraising drive in September.

The group will work with Southend Council, which is spending £190,000 on revamping the toilets downstairs.

But the charity is working on revamping the shelter itself, and its own fundraising drive is completely different to the council's.

When completed by the autumn, the shelter could be used by up to 80 community groups, and have facilities that allow disabled people to easily access the beach.

Bob Craven, chairman of the charity, said: “This is something created by the community for the community. There is a great will to make it happen.

“It’s like we have all the tools on the bench, we just have to put it together.

“If disabled people want to spend a day by the sea then the shelter will have all the facilities they need.”

It was during the charity’s survey of the block, which houses public toilets run by the council underneath, that structural issues with the building became apparent.

Southend Council has said it will refurbish the building and re-structure the roof of the toilets as part of their revamp, but the actual tramstop shelter will be run by the charity.

The charity estimates it will need about £250,000 to make the dream a reality, as the shelter is in a poor state and has been unused for the past 35 years.

Mr Craven, 68, has worked for 20 years to get the project off the ground.

He said: “We are saddened by the demise of many of Southend’s facilities, but are well aware of the pressure on local government finances.

“It has taken us 20 years for the council to recognise the value of our project and through the generosity and support of the community and businesses in the area, we are sure, we will raise the £200,000 we still need and provide this facility for so many deserving people, all year round.”