CROWCOMBE residents had cause to celebrate following the completion of £80,000 works to coincide with the 500th anniversary of the village Church House.

A special hog roast event was held to herald the occasion following a long journey and a lot of hard work to get funding and then complete the work itself.

Chairman of the Church House management committee Peter Manneer said it was a fantastic achievement and wanted to thank all of the villagers who through their generosity helped inspire many trusts to give grants to the project.

Crowcombe villagers managed to raise a staggering £25,000 through 60 family donations, businesses and various fundraising efforts, which in turn inspired the Pilgrim's Trust to donate £22,000 to the conservation of the Church House.

A number of smaller grants also followed before the Heritage Lottery Fund stepped in and agreed £48,000 worth of grants in total which meant the work could be completed.

The work on the Grade II listed building included fixing significant structural problems, re-pointing, replacing lead work and commissioning new wrought iron guttering.

For the first 150 years of Church House's existence it was the venue for the parish community to hold parties to raise money for good causes.

In the 17th century Puritan influences led to downstairs becoming the home for the parish's destitute and upstairs for the Carew charity school.

This lasted for about 200 years, until Crowcombe's destitute were transferred to the new Williton Workhouse in 1838 and our village school was opened in 1872 which left the Church House redundant.

Over the next 30 years the building became damaged, and by 1907 the south side was open to the sky and the gallery floor had collapsed.

The then Rector Henry Christian Young took it upon himself to try and restore the building, getting charity status for Church House and raising around £55,000 in today's money to complete restoration works.

Mr Manneer said: "So Church House enters its second 500 years: to fulfil its original role as a special venue for the village's meetings, weddings receptions and family celebrations.

"We have unearthed so much fascinating stuff on the building that Catherine Brew and I have decided in addition to write a glossy History of Church House."