Members of a church in St Ives have thanked the community for their help in raising thousands of pounds to allow much-needed repairs to be carried out.

The congregation at the St Ives Free Church have thanked residents of the town for helping to raised £40,000 towards the cost of repairing the church spire.

The improvements to the Grade II-listed building include repairs to the spire as well as pointing and weed removal treatment.

Nev Runham, a member of the Save our Spire fundraising team, said: “The appeal has now ended, although, of course, the church is grateful for any donations received on an ongoing basis for its extensive community work.

“We cannot believe how much money we raised and how generous everyone has been.

“We want to church to be a community hub for everyone and we hope that the fundraising and the repairs will encourage people to get involved.”

The fundraising, which started in January 2017, saw a total of £43,000 raised for the church. The work will take restoration specialists three months to complete.

Fundraising efforts included cake stalls, table top sales, auctions and contests.

Mr Runham added: “We just want everyone to know that we are so grateful for every penny donated.

“Thank you for all of your support for the church in this way over the past 15 months. We are pleased to say that we raised almost £43,000 during the appeal period – a phenomenal amount; and further money is still coming in to replenish church funds.”

The church dates back to 1863 and its tall spire has become a landmark for the town. It hosts a range of community groups and events and has been supported by the St Ives Civic Society since 1979.