A £40,000 appeal has been launched to refurbish the bells in Savernake's St Katharine's Church tower which are in need of urgent repair.

After more than 150 years of service, the bells are showing serious signs of wear and tear and have been deemed dangerous, with many of the wooden fittings needing to be replaced and the bells need re-tuning.

In the last month or so, more than £11,000 has been raised towards the repairs and on December 3, the St Katharine's Church Bells Appeal will officially be launched with the hosting of an event at the church.

"The bells are getting more and more damaged when they are rung, so we have stopped that. Our safety concerns have been there for a couple of years but now we feel we have to act," said team rector for Savernake, Michael McHugh.

"The the major danger is the stocks that hold the bells on the mechanism need replacing. The idea of a bell dropping off is too disastrous to even contemplate.

"The sound of church bells are an important part of community life, especially in these rural areas. Like the church, the bells are part of the place's identity.

"There are regular checks carried out on the bells. They need to be remounted and made safe. When this work is done we can have working bells for the next 100 years.

"We are so grateful for everyone's contributions. It is surprising at times how generous people and are for that we are very thankful."

If the funds are raised, the bells will be removed from the church next Spring, taken away, refurbished and then refitted - all of which should take several months.

Some of the other work would include checking the mechanisms and woodwork and re-tuning the bells too. St Katharine's Church has a peal of five bells which were installed in the 1860s at the same time as the church was built.

"St Katherine's Primary School regularly use the church, it is a lovely spot for weddings and we get visiting ringers from Winchester and Salisbury among other things," added Mr McHugh.

"We recently had a successful bells appeal in Little Bedwyn which raised around £50,000. It may seem like quite a lot of money but this is something that will not need to be repaired for a century."

For more information on how to donate call 01672 870746 or email st-katharines@savernaketeam.com