SILTON parish, four miles north of Gillingham, has been recognised as the Historic Church Fundraiser of the Year.

Dorset Historic Churches Trust has awarded the Morshead Trophy for this year to St Nicholas Church, Silton.

The trophy is named after Sir Owen Morshead, one of the founders of the Trust in 1960. It’s open to every parish in the county and is awarded by Dorset Historic Churches Trust to the team that makes the greatest contribution to the annual Ride & Stride event.

Silton’s Ride & Stride participants raised over £2,000 in sponsorship, an amazing achievement for a small village. This is a significant contribution to the overall figure of £87,000 raised by 147 parishes across Dorset.

While half of the sponsorship raised is returned to the parish, the event raises funds that allow the Trust to make grants totalling over £100,000 a year to help conserve beautiful and historic church buildings all over Dorset.

The presentation was made at a special event in Silton village hall by chairman of the trust, John Stokoe. He congratulated all involved, adding “It is wonderful to see the success of a small community like Silton.”

Receiving the trophy on behalf of the parish, determined long-distance cyclist and participant Peter Williams thanked the Trust for its dedication. He added that “It would be hard to maintain Dorset’s highly treasured churches without the invaluable support of DHCT”.

This year’s Ride & Stride is on September 9.