AN historic carriage which has spent decades in storage has taken to the roads again.

The Sovereign Coach has been stored at Spetchley Park Gardens for many decades.

It would once have been the main method of transport for the Berkeley family, taking them on pleasure trips and to formal events in and around Worcester and further afield.

Thanks to a grant from the Heritage Lottery Fund, the coach has been transported on a trailer to specialist coach restorers, Fairbourne Carriages in Kent, for conservation work.

The coach was built in 1875 and is made with an ash frame and mahogany panels which would have been in a high gloss black lacquer.

The family crest is on the doors.

Following completion of the conservation works, which is expected to take eight months, the coach will return to the gardens where it will be put on display.