Vicar's bell seat is so a-pealing

But when the bells at St John's Church in Pool Quay, between Oswestry and Welshpool, needed to be replaced, parishioners didn't want to see them thrown away.

As a result, the bells have been turned into an unusual swinging bench which now takes pride of place in the churchyard.

The Rev Caroline Rhodes, vicar of the grouped parishes of Guilsfield, Buttington and Pool Quay, said the bench has a special place in the hearts of the congregation.

She said: "The bells were originally in the church tower, but needed to be replaced. The priest in charge at the time, Mike Powell, was reluctant to see them go to waste and had the idea to convert them into a seat.

"It took a long time to get the bells weather-proofed, and while this work was going on Mike was asked by the bishop to move to a new parish. Unfortunately he was diagnosed with cancer soon after moving and died in July 2014.

"The people of Pool Quay decided to position the bench in that particular spot because it was his favourite place in the churchyard, close to where he liked to sit on the wall, and the seat has been dedicated to Mike's memory."

The bench is not the only item to have been dedicated to the memory of Mr Powell. Last month St Dogfan's Church in Llanrhaeadr welcomed Bishop John Davies to dedicate a processional cross to his memory and to two other parishioners, Ray Hughes and Moyra Ellis. The cross came from a church in Llandudno.