St Mary's Church in Portchester is running a £78,000 appeal to replace its dilapidated roof.

To help out, local councillor Nick Walker has been selling off leftover tiles from his newly-built home, which match the ones needed for the church.

For £5 each residents can buy the tiles and then write inscriptions on them.

One person left a message saying 'I was married under this roof' while another read 'I was baptised under this roof'.

There have also been garden parties and special events held to help raise money for the appeal. Up to 140 tiles were recently sold at The Portchester Gala, when the mayor of Fareham also signed some tiles.

Cllr Walker said: 'I was amazed at how many we sold at the gala. I thought we might sell about 40, not 140.

'For a small church to raise £78,000 is a pretty arduous task.'

Some of the tiles are being donated by Cllr Walker while others will be bought from different sources.

The project is expected to last two years, to give enough time to raise enough money for the appeal.



The Reverend Charlie Walker said: 'We decided to raise money for the church and we thought this would be a really good, fun way to do it.

'It's taken off very well. We sold a lot of tiles to begin with and now people are asking to put their names on and leave messages.

'A lot of people in the parish feel close to the church and they care about the future of it.'

Cllr Walker is welcoming residents to contact him if they are interested in buying a tile and making a subscription.

Anyone who is interested is encouraged to call Cllr Walker on (023) 9238 4943 or call the Parish Office at St Mary's Church on 023 9232 1380.

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