SET in the ancient landscape of a manor house, tithe barn, dovecote, alms houses and a deer park, like many other historic places of worship, every nook and cranny at St Mary's is a maintenance nightmare.

The earliest parts date back to the 12th century. Some of the windows, arches and doorways in the Norman nave and chancel are still visible.

Two centuries later the church was rebuilt in the 'decorative' style, with trussed rafter roofs and a chapel added.

Now, in the cluster of six churches in Teme Valley south, Kyre has just 120 inhabitants. The community resources - the shop, post office and pubs have gone; the school closed in 1974 and children are bussed to Tenbury.

Yet, people still feel part of a community and not just a commuter village, partly, it seems, by still having a village hall and a church in which to celebrate life and death.

The joint church wardens worked closely with Parochial Church Council (PCC) member Jessica Middleton and Professor Gordon Lawrence, to deliver the restoration project.

Maggie Kingston said. "It's all about a sense of community fostered by being part of a church network. You meet people not necessarily part of your social circle and, this way, we attract villagers who may not be regular worshippers but still feel the church occupies an important place in the life of the community."

However, maintaining the fabric of St Mary's is way beyond local resources. From 1992-94, financial support from the Historic Churches Preservation Trust, English Heritage, plus local fund-raising, helped to extensively restore the church steeple while further grants in the last two years have contributed to major repairs to the roof, which alone cost £64,000. There were also smaller grants from Worcestershire and Dudley Churches Trust, the Lasletts Charity and the Arthur Evans Trust.

More importantly, the small community raised £10, 000. "Now we can concentrate on developing our church as a quiet space where people can continue to find rest and refreshment for the soul," said Jenny. "We are working on an idea of a 'living churchyard' project."

Maggie added: "Our annual Step into the Past day, with a local history display, encourages past and present residents to meet and share memories, is at the end of May and this year will include a service of celebration for the completion of the refurbishment."

Now the recent bad weather has opened up leaks in the steeple area so it was mops and buckets all round for the dedicated church wardens and company.

However, they took it all in their stride and happily agreed they were fortunate to live in a beautiful part of the world.