MORE than £1.75 million has been awarded to repair, maintain and restore Yorkshire churches near landfill sites since 2000.

A partnership between Yorkshire Historic Churches Trust (YHCT) and Waste Recycling Environment Ltd (WREN) has helped more than 200 churches through its receipts from the Landfill Communities Fund, which allows landfill operators to give 6.5 per cent of the tax they collect to environmental bodies.

One of the beneficiaries has been Selby Abbey, which received a £118,000 grant from the YHCT for a restoration programme which saved it from closure.

David Quick, YHCT’s chairman, said: “Over the centuries, churches have defined landscapes and brought together communities.”