WELLAND Parish Hall was the venue for a Christmas fair and coffee morning to raise funds for restoration work at St Wulstan’s Church in Little Malvern.

The event brought together exhibitors, not only from within the three counties, but also from as far afield as Bristol and the Brecon Beacons.

From slippers to decorations, candles and pottery, to original paintings and smoked fish, it was an opportunity to discover unusual presents and pick up some festive food in good time for Christmas.

St Wulstan’s parishioners were busy beforehand, baking cakes and making jam and chutney, as well as collecting and donating music, books and gifts for the choir stall and a bottle tombola.

Dedicated to supporting the restoration work at St Wulstan’s Church in Little Malvern, where Sir Edward Elgar and members of his family are buried, the Christmas fair provided an opportunity to raise funds while enjoying a morning out with friends.

The proceeds of the stalls, raffle and tombola together with stallholders’ contributions, entrance and other donations, came to over £1,530.

Organiser Charlotte Carver was helped by fellow parishioners and local business people, several of whom sponsored the costs of staging the event, including Andrew Grant LLP, Malvern Party and Balloons and Online Media Works.

She said: “It was a really happy day and I’m already being asked if we’ll run another one sometime. Even if you didn’t make it, you can still make a difference to the restoration appeal by sending a donation in now. Please make cheques payable to St Wulstan’s Church Little Malvern and send to Bidders Croft, Welland, WR13 6LN. Any donation, of whatever size, will be greatly appreciated.”

​The main church was built in 1862 with the baptistery being added some years later. The land was made available by the Berington family of Little Malvern Court.

The fabric of the church had been neglected during the later 20th century and in 1996 a restoration fund was started. In 2004 a major refurbishment project started which included replacing the roof and much restoration work to the inside of the church. The original roof beams, typical of many churches in Malvern, luckily survived the neglect and can be seen today. This task cost over a third of a million pounds.