THREE-years after planning permission was granted for an ambitious Morgan sculpture in Great Malvern, trustees have launched a last-ditch attempt to raise the necessary funds.

The Morgan Statue Foundation, which aims to place a life-size bronze model of a 1958 Morgan 4/4 at the Priory Gatehouse, has raised just £60,000 of the £300,000 required.

Now the foundation has set a September 30 time-limit on finding the outstanding money or a guarantor before winding up the project.

Chairman of the foundation, Roger Moran, called it “a tremendous lost opportunity”, adding: “It’s a great loss because it would have been a real attraction for people coming to the UK and the West Midlands.”

Mr Moran, a Morgan-enthusiast from Suffolk, has spent the past six-years and a considerable amount of his own money on the project.

He said if the appeal was wound-up, the foundation would be reimbursing all traceable donations. Anonymous donations would either be given to charity or used to cover costs, he added.

In a statement, the project’s trustees, who include town councillor Mike Selby and Brian Iles of Malvern Museum, blamed an increase in material costs and an anticipated reduction in lottery funding.

“When the project was initiated in 2004, funding was not considered to be a problem as Arts Council England indicated to the chairman that the statue would “very likely” attract an 80 per cent maximum grant from them through the National Lottery.

“However, after London was awarded the 2012 Olympic Games, National Lottery funding has been prioritised to this event. The maximum grant that we can now expect from this source is £100,000.”

Donations so far have been received from the Morgan Motor Company itself and Ford Motor Company - through Henry Ford’s grandson himself - as well as Morgan clubs and enthusiasts from around the world.

The statue, depicting motor company founder HSF Morgan handing over a set of keys to his son Peter, was approved by Malvern Hills District Council’s planning committee on May 23, 2007.

It had been hoped the initial £200,000 cost would be found by 2009 to coincide with the Pickersleigh Road-based company’s centenary celebrations.

For more information on the appeal, visit morgan-statue.org.