The church is built around a 15th Century structure

Dry rot has left St Lawrence's in such a bad state of repair that it can only be used in summer.

English Heritage and the Heritage Lottery Fund have pledged the cash to replace its rotten timbers, re-point masonry and fix crumbling plaster.

But funding is still needed to repair the rest of the church, with the total bill expected to reach �720,000.

Water damage

Church warden Brian Fletcher said: "This grant is absolutely crucial and means we can start down the long road of restoring the church's interior.

"Our ambition is to make it useable for the next 100 years and tap the potential of the building to host all manner of activities, together with all-year-round worship."

St Lawrence's Church, which is Grade II listed, was built in 1863 but the churchyard contains a 15th Century tower from a previous structure.

A �200,000 re-roofing project in 1998 aimed at stopping moisture entering the structure revealed the extent of the water damage that engineers are now set to tackle.