A VACANT grade II listed church in the heart of Pontypool will go up for auction again after it failed to sell last week.

Owner Victor Owens put the Mount Pleasant Church on Hanbury Road up for sale at the start of the month and remains undeterred after no bids reached the minimum guide price on Friday.

There were half a dozen bids between £60,000 to £70,000 but none went over the £75,000 minimum.

Mr Owens, 64, said: “We were happy with the interest received at the auction but it stalled before any extra bidding went over our minimum reserve.

“As is the way with these things it depends on who turns up on the night and this will give us extra time to garner interest and speak to people.”

Interest in the 1112 year-old site has been mixed but with its grade II listing Mr Owens believes it is ‘ideal as a performing or arts centre of some kind’ and intends to put it up for a second auction next month.

The reverend and former Gwent police officer along with his wife Liz bought the church in 2006 and decided to sell it as they increasingly spend time performing missionary work in South America and at their holiday home in France, which meant it had become a struggle holding weekly services.

Mr Owens said: “My daughter used to run the services when we were away but she has taken on her own commitments now so it’s meant we have decided to sell.

“We spent two years bringing it up to scratch when we bought it and got the weekly numbers up as well as holding some lovely wedding ceremonies at Mount Pleasant.”

Sean Roper, of Newport-based Paul Fosh Auctions, said: “It was disappointing to see it not sell but a party which showed interest before but couldn’t meet the auction guideline have again been in discussions, so it’s certainly not dead in the water.”

Unless sold beforehand, it will go up for auction at 5pm on Friday July 28, at The Park Inn Hotel, on Circle Way East in Cardiff.