A vicar in Hounslow fell to his knees after completing a gruelling 100-mile run drumming up thousands of pounds towards funding church renovations.

Reverend Craig Holmes of St Richard's Church in Hanworth triumphed in the Centurion Autumn 100 race, raising over £2,500 for much-needed restoration works at his church in Forge Lane.

The race started in the village of Goring on the River Thames and took the man of cloth 22 hours and 12 minutes to cross the finishing line on October 15.

The £1.4 million Project Grow is an ambitious scheme to transform the ageing church into a modern community hub, with £380,000 raised so far through a number of fundraising efforts and donations.

Having recovered from his 100-mile run, Revd Holmes said: “The money raised through running the Autumn 100 is an important step in the right direction but we still have a huge mountain to climb to meet the costs of refurbishing the church and seeing Project Grow through to the end.

"We have received so much support from the local community who have rallied around St Richard’s and the focus now is on moving forward and building momentum for the project.”

First on the agenda is to replace the roof which has been falling apart for some time due to leaks and corrosion as a result of metal being stolen, and work is due to begin on this next year.

The church currently also serves as a venue for day-care and an after-school club.

Plans for the revamped multi-use building include a larger worship area, bigger playgroup, meeting spaces as well as a café and better kitchen facilities.

Hounslow council has granted planning permission for Project Grow and neighbouring churches and the wider community have supported the plans.

Last year, Revd Holmes completed the Thames Path Challenge .

To help fundraising for the project email craigholmes@strichardshanworth.org

Find out more about Project Grow.

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