THE church where Sir Edward Elgar is buried has been given £100,000 to restore its roof.

The money for St Wulstan's RC Church, Little Malvern, comes from the Heritage Lottery Fund, administered by English Heritage.

Fundraisers who have been working for years to restore the church are delighted by the donation.

Lt Col James Sweetman, chairman of St Wulstan's Restoration Fund, hopes the grant, added to money already raised and a loan from Downside Abbey, will mean work could start later this year.

"We're very lucky because English Heritage has just changed the way that it allocates grants," he said.

"Previously it was much more difficult for Grade II listed buildings, like the church, to get grants; most of the money went to Grade I and Grade II* buildings."

Lt Col Sweetman said he hoped re-roofing would be completed before the major Elgar Festival in July 2004, being organised by the English Symphony Orchestra.

He said: "It would be a great shame to have the festival on and all the Elgar fans in town, only to have his burial place swathed in scaffolding."

About £250,000 is needed for the roof and other major work, and there is still about £100,000 to raise.

Lt Col Sweetman said he hoped the Heritage Lottery Grant would raise the profile of the appeal.

"I hope the fact that English Heritage has given us such a big grant will convince people that this is a major project which should be supported," he said.

Other bodies that have already offered help include Worcestershire and Dudley Historic Churches (£2,000) and Welcome To Our Future, the Malvern-based charity funded by Severn Waste Environmental Fund (£5,000).