VILLAGERS who raised a staggering £44,000 to save their crumbling church have been told that they actually need TREBLE that amount.

Work to St John's Church in Allerston, near Thornton-le-Dale, was ordered because of fears the church tower was in danger of collapse.

Deteriorating stonework and rotting wood have meant the building is in need of urgent repair.

Now, after a successful two-year appeal to secure the cash, an extensive survey by English Heritage has revealed that more than £115,000 is needed to save the Norman building.

Vicar the Rev David Clark said he was "flabbergasted" at the news.

He said: "Everyone has done a marvellous job and worked like mad to raise the money.

"The church has such a small congregation and they deserve every credit.

"But now they have had a smack in the teeth."

Fundraiser Joyce Smith, who helped organise countless events to raise the cash, admitted they were devastated to be told the full scale of the damage.

She said: "We have milked the village dry with fundraising.

"You can't carry on raising money indefinitely in a small village, people can't keep on giving."

But parochial church council member Jill Popham said they were optimistic a reassessment from English Heritage would mean more grant money being awarded.

She said: "English Heritage have given us renewed hope of raising the money."

The church received a huge boost last year when they were awarded a £25,000 grant from the Government body.

Richard Darn, from English Heritage, said its first inspection which led to the initial lower estimate had only been a visual one, and a more thorough survey revealed the damage to be worse than originally thought.

He said: "Allerston Church remains a high priority for us and a decision is imminent."

Church architect with responsibility for Allerston, Richard Carr-Archer, said the plight of St John's Church highlighted the dire straits many of the district's churches and listed buildings were in.

He said: "English Heritage do not have anywhere near the right sorts of money to spend on churches across the country."

Mr Carr-Archer added: "It's a common understanding that they need at least two and a half times the money they currently have available to allow such essential work to continue."

Updated: 09:17 Tuesday, December 11, 2001