A TOT of whisky, heaps of bravery and a whole lot of community spirit all helped a Worcester vicar sleep the night on her church's roof.

The Rev Janet House certainly took fund-raising to another level when she went on top of St Matthew's Church, in Ronkswood, in a bid to raise vital funds to repair it.

The distinctive building, known locally as "the drum" because of its cylindrical shape, needs a drastic £30,000 makeover, with the roof, walls and cladding peeling and falling apart.

More than £1,000 in donations has already poured in from individuals, the nearby pub and local shops and schools.

And despite suffering a few early morning aches and pains, the vicar of Holy Trinity and St Matthew's said snuggling into her sleeping bag to drum up the funds was well worth it.

"Some of the congregation got together and gave me a slap-up candle-lit meal and some strawberries and cream before I went on the roof," said Mrs House.

"I even had the landlord from The Punchbowl come up with whisky twice in the evening to keep me going through the night."

Mrs House said the community had been fantastic, with schoolchildren shouting encouragement in the morning and police officers on patrol keeping check on her throughout the night.

Although the weather was reasonable at night, Mrs House said she had been a little stiff early in the morning when the temperature dropped. But the feedback she had had from everyone made it all worthwhile.

The sleep-over is the start of a major campaign by the congregation and the whole community to bring the distinctive church back to its best. Various fund-raising efforts have so far brought in nearly £3,000 towards the total.