THEY know all about Darwen Tower in the House of Commons. Rossendale and Darwen MP Jake Berry filled them in last back-end. So did the Speaker, Lindsay Hoyle, and then the Leader of the House, Jacob Rees-Mogg, chipped in with his six pennyworth.

This spring Parliament will probably get an update when work on renovating the 123 year-old tower hopefully gets under way.

Jake Berry prompted a discussion about heritage buildings in the North of England and used the £250,000 Government grant that is supporting the project as a peg. He said the cash raised by local folk (over £80,000 at the last count) had helped to encourage the grant.

He suggested to the Speaker – Labour MP for Chorley is his part-time job – that Darwen Tower, "high on the boundary between our constituencies, is a building in which we can all take pride."

"Absolutely correct," replied the Speaker from his lofty chair. He said that from the window of his home in Chorley he could look out and see the tower. It was obvious that he understood the pride which Darwen folk had in it.

Rees-Mogg spoke of the importance of local landmarks to Britain's communities. It was good to hear how townspeople had supported work on Darwen Tower - which he knew was octagonal in shape and impressive in style - and how government money for communities was also being spent on town centres and high streets.

The Leader said: "Our local history ... is incredibly valuable and the government are committed to preserving and enriching our heritage."

It's surprising that the Tower is still there after all the problems it has faced since it opened in 1898 having been funded by public subscription to mark Queen Victoria's Diamond Jubilee; uncaring councils, moorland fires, soot and grime from thousands of chimneys down in the valley, lashings from awful weather and attacks from ignorant vandals.

So, now that there is enough money in the kitty to – finally – get to grips with the many problems up at the windswept tower, what are the priorities?

Main problem highlighted by heritage conservation experts Jubb Clews Ltd of Ribchester, is the ingress of rainwater through open joints and missing doors and windows. The upper deck has become loose and is currently propped up with supports.

The tower needs repointing with traditional lime sand mortar and the lower steps need repositioning on a new base. Some stone has cracked.

Handrails and engraved plaques will be replaced and there will be new "interpretation" boards – whatever they are. So far there doesn't appear to be any move to replace the interior lighting or to illuminate the exterior now that solar power and LED lighting is readily available.

All work on the original tower was done by local labour and without expenditure on consultants. Perhaps local labour will once again be called on to play a major part?

Next step on the road to recovery will probably come tomorrow when the council's planning committee review the planning application for the work which is expected to get under way in the spring.