EVERY pew was full on Bank Holiday Monday in Chapmanslade as St Philip & St James’ Church celebrated its 150th birthday.

Representatives from village groups nominated a favourite hymn for a Songs of Praise-themed service; worship was led by the Right Rev Edward Condry, Bishop of Ramsbury, and Rev Pauline Reid, Priest-in-Charge of the Cley Hill Villages Benefice and Rural Dean. The church bell ringers also performed.

"It was an amazing service, enjoyed by everyone, and it was so pleasing to see the church so full,” said Rev Reid. “The Chapmanslade community truly has been at the heart of the church for the last 150 years and we look forward to serving the community for the next 150 years."

After the service, worshippers headed to the school hall next door for tea and cake, and to enjoy a special exhibition of the church’s history. This included an order of service for the 1967 centenary celebrations, unearthed at the Wiltshire and Swindon History Centre. A special birthday cake was served, too, with candles and a colourful motif.

The Songs of Praise theme was inspired by the parish performances at Corsley Showground, which are always well attended.

Chapmanslade Parish Council chairman Phil Jefferson, 73, said: "I retire this week and I'm delighted that my spell ends on such a high note.

"The idea seemed to catch the imagination of village residents. It was particularly pleasing to see so many former residents who had heard about the service and who had special memories of the church coming back to the village for it."

Mr Jefferson, who lives in Brimhill Rise, points out that Chapmanslade is "a very special village with a strong community spirit".

"A good village is judged by the quality of its school, its pub, its church and its shop," he said. "We qualify really well in three of these respects. Sadly we have no shop but nonetheless ours is a very popular place in which to live and we are all very proud of our village.

“In the next few weeks village residents will also be invited to complete a questionnaire to find out how they would like to make Chapmanslade an even better place to live.”