Sole public timepiece in Withersfield, near Haverhill, restored thanks to £5,000 Suffolk Historic Churches Trust grant

A village’s only public clock is back in action after being restored thanks to a grant worth thousands of pounds.

The 54-year-old clock at St Mary’s Church, Withersfield had stood still for many years but returned this week in full working order following a restoration that took two months.

It was taken away to A James Jewellers’ workshop in Saffron Walden to have the driving mechanism restored and the clock face cleaned and reguilded.

It now keeps time over the village again, where it is the only public timepiece.

The Revd Max Drinkwater, priest-in-charge at St Marys Withersfield and St Mary’s Haverhill, said: “So many people come and go at the church, which is always open during the day as a prayerful, quiet space.

“The clock is right above the entrance so it is one of the first things people see. It is good to have it working again, and it reminds us of the importance of the village church as a place to bring people together.”

The £6,000 restoration was made possible with a grant of £5,000 from the Suffolk Historic Churches Trust (the church put in the rest of the costs), through a fund for projects commemorating the late Queen’s Platinum Jubilee.

Mr Drinkwater added: “The Jubilee was a time when the community came together to celebrate, and we first thought of this project to honour the late Queen while she was still with us.

“Today we give thanks for her legacy of community service and fellowship.”