A MEDIEVAL church in Puddletown has been restored thanks to a £105,000 project.

Churchgoer Jim Wilson applied for the funding for the restoration of St Mary’s Church.

It included a £15,000 grant from the Dorset Historical Churches Trust (DHCT), one of the largest it has given in recent times. From the Athelhampton Chantry, which includes the tomb-chest of a 14th century knight, to the pews installed after a visit from Archbishop Laud in 1635, the village church is a treasure trove of history.

The medieval monuments had been in need of attention for many years.

Jeremy Selfe, chairman of DHCT grants committee, said: “This grant of £15,000 included £5,000 from the NCT, making it one of the largest grants recently offered by the Trust.”

Jim Wilson, chairman of Athelhampton working group, said: “It is very pleasing that visitors to the Athelhampton Chapel are no longer critical of the chapel’s condition.”

Pictured are churchwarden Bob Todd, Jim Wilson, the Rev Sarah Hillman, Simon Pomeroy, chairman of DHCT, Ursula Pomeroy, deanery representative for DHCT, Sue Bruce-Payne and Jeremy Selfe of DHCT.