ONE of Worcestershire’s most spectacular churches has been handed a £20,000 windfall to help urgent repairs to its roof.

St Michael and All Angels Church in Great Witley has been handed the cash as part of a £550,000 series of grants by the National Churches Trust.

The cash will go towards a bid by the Grade I listed church, which has been placed on English Heritage's Heritage at Risk Register, to raise £60,000.

Churchwarden Rick Warner the church had secured an agreement from the Heritage Lottery Fund for a £60,000 grant, but was required to raise the same amount itself before the cash is handed over.

"We still have some way to go - we still need about £25,000," he said. "But we are getting there.

"Throughout this year we've done some fundraising such as a social evening in October where Henry Sandon gave a talk."

Although repairs were made to the roof of the 18th century church in the 1970s, the way many of the tiles were secured with bolts and washers is now considered to be a very poor technique and several of them are now cracked, split or have become unfixed.

As a result the three delicate baroque ceiling paintings – which author of England’s Thousand Best Churches Simon Jenkins described as “An Italianate extravaganza” – are at risk of damage from water leaks.

Mr Warner said it was hoped repair work could be carried out next year.

"Some of the slates are in very poor condition," he said. "It's very important we get it fixed."

The church has also received grants from a number of other organisations including £2,500 from the Worcester and Dudley Historic Churches Trust.

St Michael and All Angels, which was completed between 1732 and 1735 and sits next to Witley Court, receives about 30,000 visitors a year.

Elsewhere in Worcestershire the fund has also handed a £10,000 grant to the appeal by Evesham Abbey Bell Tower to raise £500,000 to repair the 16th century structure.

In total 30 churches and chapels across the UK were given a share of the cash.

Vice president of the National Churches Trust journalist Huw Edwards said the cost of repairing and maintaining church buildings, most of which are many hundreds of years old, was often far beyond the means of their congregations.

“(The grants) will help ensure that more of the UK’s places of worship remain open and playing a vital role in the life of the nation for many years to come,” he said.

“Churches may be historic buildings. But they also need to be part of our future.”

To donate to the church's restoration fund call Angela Snow on 01905 457 276 or email gwcrestoration@sky.com.