A YORK church has succeeded in raising £200,000, the amount needed to restore its Lantern Tower.

The building work at All Saints' Church, on Pavement, in the city centre, has already begun and is expected to be completed by Christmas.

The Rev David Porter, vicar of All Saints', said: "I'm delighted with the amount we've raised. Hopefully we'll have the church back to its former glory in no time at all."

The money has been raised over a period of five years, principally through donations and fundraising concerts.

To complete the funding, the church is to stage a concert with the York Philharmonic Male Voice Choir at the Merchant Adventurers' Hall, on September 19, and a flower festival in the week of November 21 to 25.

The need for the work to take place was graphically-illustrated when two of the ornate finials that point skywards at the top of the tower fell down.

In such a crowded part of the city, a passer-by could easily have been hit.

Mr Porter added that it was possible to see through the wall in places because so much stonework had eroded away.

He said the beams that hold the lantern itself rest on corbels which have also been substantially eroded over time.

One beam is already dislodged and Mr Porter said he feared that if another should become insecure, the tower could become extremely unstable.

But since the scaffolding has gone up around the church, it has suffered vandalism on three separate occasions, with the perimeter fencing pulled down and trampled on while passers-by walked on apparently oblivious. Mr Porter said he was "shocked that nobody had reported the vandalism. I sincerely hope it does not occur again."

It is not the first facelift for the Lantern Tower.

The church dates back to the medieval period, but the Lantern Tower was replaced with an identical copy in 1837.

Mr Porter said the second tower had done "extremely well, despite having to withstand more than 150 years of smoke and wind erosion."

The tower suffered from its location, situated opposite the smoke-billowing Craven sweet factory, which used to occupy the space now taken by the Jorvik Viking Centre.

The tower, once re-repaired, is expected to be secure for at least 50 years.

Updated: 11:57 Tuesday, July 03, 2001