WELCOMING the start of spring, and banishing the cold, drizzly weather of winter, Lanteglos church held a Snowdrop Sunday, allowing the community to have a glimpse at the flowers.

Lanteglos church invited members of the public, young and old, to go along into their meadow and see the snowdrops that have just come into bloom.

Those who attended also enjoyed a delicious afternoon tea, and managed to raise £250 for the church funds.

Churchwarden Mary Pearce was pleased with the success of the event, she said: “It was very successful. It was the first time we’ve done it, so you don’t always know how it’s going to go, but around 40 people came and the snowdrops just look amazing in the churchyard.

“The event, in a sense, was welcoming people to the church, and trying to get people to come along and see what there is there.

“The churchyard is two and a half acres, and part of that is a wildlife meadow. So we get primroses, daffodils — the bluebells will start to come out in the coming weeks — so in the spring, it really does look lovely.”

Mary explained that the Friends of Lanteglos Church group have been fundraising for the church for a few years now, and the Snowdrop Sunday event was just one of the ways to raise some more money, of which will eventually be used to repair the church roof and any other refurbishments.

A Grade I listed building, and with parts of the church that are over 1,000 years old — believed to be linked to one of the oldest Anglo-Saxon fonts in England — loyal members of the church were very concerned to hear that the parish mother church of Camelford could be closed down due to its condition.

English Heritage deemed the building ‘at risk’, and the diocese said that it could close. Therefore, the Friends of Lanteglos Church was formed, and they set up funds to start paying for the running costs, and eventually repair and refurbish parts of the building.

The church has also applied for funding from the Heritage Lottery Fund, but will find out in June whether they are eligible for it.

Mary added: “We’ve got quite a bit in our account, which is keeping the church going and paying for the running costs. As soon as we hear from the Heritage Lottery Fund, we’re hoping they will be very keen to help us out, and think we will be very successful with our project.”

The church will also be hosting coffee mornings on the second Friday of every month.