The congregation of St James’ Church in Trowbridge has come to its rescue, raising £10,000 in a few months towards repairing its spire.

The spire, which is a focal point in the county town, has fallen into disrepair again after it initially collapsed in the 1990s, with the inner iron structure eroding due to rainwater seeping through the Bath stone.

Reverend Rob Thomas said the congregation rallied round when they heard about the vital work last year and have raised £10,000 since November.

He said: “Scaffolding work that is going on at the moment is work that has been factored in for a while.

“This uses most of the church’s remaining funds. We were then hit with two unexpected things, one of which was the spire itself and the other was lead thefts on three parts of the roof.”

The total cost of repairing the spire and the lead was £40,000, £15,000 of which is needed to repair the spire both inside and out. They used £25,000 from existing funds for the lead repairs and an alarm system to prevent further thefts or damage happening.

Fundraising efforts started in November for the spire and in a matter of months the congregation had donated £10,000 with the help of local firms Goughs, Barker and Courtiers Funeral Directors and Howard Travel.

Mr Thomas said: “People have been so generous and we also asked local businesses to see what they would be willing to contribute to this.

“A few gave us small sums, but we appreciated the support and the congregation have been very generous.”

Retired friends Frances Landeryou and Dorothy McNeish, who have been members of the church for years, also undertook an hour-long swim to raise £1,000 for the spire.

Mrs McNeish said: “I had hoped we would reach a four figure sum. We will have reached £1,400 when all the money is in, including Giftaid.”

Work on the spire is now well under way.

The church is organising further fundraising events to collect the last £5,000 needed to complete the work.