Repair work is being carried out on a landmark building in Sudbury “as a matter of urgency” to prevent lives from being put at risk, it has been revealed.

Members of the public were left puzzled after the town hall was completely shrouded in plastic sheeting.

But according to the town council, parts of the building are disintegrating from the inside causing big pieces of masonry to fall off.

Extensive work to make the town hall safe has now been carried out and further work to stop parts of the building from rotting away are scheduled for completion by the end of August.

Builder and project manager Darren Russell said: “The decorative cornice at the top of the building is in a very bad state of repair and large chunks of masonry were falling from the top of the building. We had to make that safe as a matter of urgency as people’s lives were genuinely at risk.

“The damage has been caused by water getting into the cracks over the years and freezing, which is causing some of the building to disintegrate from the inside out.

“Over the past 100 years it has been patched up here and there, but we have had to carry out extensive repairs to prevent any further deterioration and to ensure the building is safe.”

Despite the work taking place around the building, the town hall is operating as usual and all services are available.

Town clerk Sue Brotherwood added: “Many people have been asking us what is going on with the building and there is some misinformation going around, so we have decided to set the record straight about what is happening.

“We had no choice but to carry out this work for the sake of the future preservation of the building and the safety of the public walking below

“We would just like to remind people the town hall is still open for business.”