For nearly 10 years teams armed with gardening tools have been working to beat back the rampant weeds and turn the site into somewhere that can be enjoyed both by the local community and by wildlife.

One of those volunteers, Malcolm Haigh, said: "It went very well, there were seven or eight or us and it's amazing how much we got through, so it is looking very smart now.

"The flowers have been lovely this year, we started with snowdrops and crocuses, then there were the daffodils and now we have the bluebells."

He said St Mary's is, at nearly 12 acres, the biggest churchyard in the diocese so it is impossible to maintain it all, so they mow the area nearest the church, the current burial area and the paths, leaving the rest for the wildlife.

Malcolm added: "We are always happy to have new volunteers and we usually meet on the first Saturday of the month."

Anyone interested in helping out should contact Malcolm on 01924 479824.