A steelworker turned artist met the Mayor of Dudley to present her with his latest creation, which celebrates the new Round Oak steel plant memorial.

Councillor Hilary Bills welcomed Roger Dean to the Mayor’s parlour at the Council House this afternoon to receive his pencil sketch of the Round Oak Steelworks monument, which was unveiled last month.

Roger’s drawing captures the fine details of the 14-foot-tall monument, which was designed by Dudley’s borough artist Steve Field.

The monument depicts a large industrial ladle suspended in the air pouring molten metal. It is located on the junction of Dudley Road and John Street in Brierley Hill, close to where the plant stood prior to its demolition in 1984.

Roger worked at Round Oak from 1970 to 1981 as a technical draughtsman in the engineering department. His father and uncle were also long-serving employees at the plant, which closed at the end of 1982.

He recently resumed drawing as a hobby and produced the intricate sketch despite living with a form of Parkinson’s disease.

The drawing has been signed by the artist himself, as well as Mr Field, Cllr Bills, and Vince Thompson, the main fabricator of the iconic monument.

The work will be mounted in the Mayor’s parlour for future visitors to appreciate.

Councillor Hilary Bills, the Mayor of Dudley, said: "It was a pleasure to meet Roger and get a closer look at his new piece of work, which is a wonderfully faithful likeness of our new Round Oak Steelworks memorial.

"He has a real artistic talent and I’m touched he has decided to pass on his drawing to display in the parlour.

"Round Oak is an important part of our borough’s rich history and it’s heartening to hear about the sense of community that remains among its former workers to this day, more than 40 years since the plant’s closure."

Roger Dean said: "When I attended the unveiling of the monument, I knew I had to have a go at drawing it.

"It was a good challenge to capture the rusty, textured effect on the metal and the contrast of it glinting in the sun with all the buildings in the background.

"The monument is a great tribute to Round Oak Steelworks, a place where I’m very proud to have worked."

Built on more than 100 acres of land, Round Oak played a key role in the Industrial Revolution as one of the country’s leading manufacturers of steel. The works was a major employer in Brierley Hill for nearly 130 years.

The site of the plant was eventually redeveloped in the late 1980s to become the Waterfront business complex.