THE TOTAL cost for the refurbishment and replacement of Llandudno's Alice in Wonderland statues has reached almost £70,000.

Conwy Council is currently undertaking restoration work to the statues, which acknowledge Llandudno’s connections to Alice Liddell.

Alice Liddell lived in the resort during the 1860s and is believed to have inspired Lewis Carroll to write Alice’s Adventures in Wonderland.

Consequently, the council commissioned the carved wooden statues as part of an £85,000 Alice Trail around the town in June 2012.

The work is being completed in two phases, with work on the statues in the town centre and the ones at Happy Valley.

A Freedom of Information (FOI) request to the local authority has revealed that the former phase has cost the council £24,406, including £1,852 for the removal of the Cheshire Cat at Happy Valley.

The Alice, White Rabbit, Mad Hatter, Queen of Hearts, and Tweedle Dum and Tweedle Dee statues have been cleaned, repaired, treated and repainted, with some costs going towards site safety.

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The second phase of work has seen a total cost of £45,244, including £1,380 towards the removal and disposal of old statues.

This has funded the White Rabbit, Mad Hatters Tea Party table, little door, King and Queen Thrones, the teacher's chair, and the toadstools.

Costs have gone towards the statues' site safety, the provision of drawings of new statues and locations for approval, the construction of concrete bases, the manufacturing of new statues and other elements of the landmarks, and the transportation and installation of replacement ones.

The work is fully funded through the UK Shared Prosperity Fund and aims to safeguard the much-loved Alice trail.

Cllr Nigel Smith, the cabinet member for a sustainable economy, had previously said: “The Alice statues are loved by residents and visitors, so it’s important they are maintained so everyone can keep enjoying them.

“We’re grateful to UK Government Shared Prosperity Fund for the grant to refurbish them.

“The work includes producing and installing four new replacement statues along with the restoration, cleaning, and repairing of eight statues.

“The work is due to be completed by early 2025. The total cost of the project is £69,700.”