An application has been submitted for a grant to spruce up an iconic ruined church in North Berwick.

The application for £360,000 is to repair the former St. Andrew’s Parish Church at Kirk Ports – a ruin for decades and which lost the roof of its tower in 2011 – and was submitted to Viridor by the North Berwick Environment Trust last month.

The group decided to apply for the grant after talks with Historic Scotland over repairing the church, which has fallen into severe disrepair, stalled following their reorganisation.

The building has fallen into serious disrepair and there are concerns over its safety, which led to the removal of the tower’s roof. If they were successful, the money would be used to restore the roof, and to preserve the existing structure.

And the plans have, according to ward councillor Tim Day, had widespread support in the town.

One of the groups in favour of the plans is North Berwick Community Council (NBCC), which is to hold 10 per cent of the money, as part of the requirements of the grant.

Sheila Sinclair, NBCC chair, told the Courier: “We are not giving them 10 per cent of the money – we are holding the money as we are a reputable group.” Plans to put forward an application for a grant were discussed at a recent meeting of the community council, where members were in support of moves to restore the church.

And the plans were also supported by Mr Day, who is hopeful the group will be successful in their application.

He added: “I know that the group behind this project have already put a huge amount of effort in to get to this stage.

“There has been widespread support for this project from within North Berwick and beyond, and if this application is successful it will be a major step forward in not only reinstating the iconic bell tower, but also shoring up and preserving the existing structure for future generations.” Information boards will also be introduced to the site to allow visitors to understand the building’s history, and the link between the Kirk Ports site and St Andrew Blackadder Church on High Street.

“I believe the intention is to make use of information boards to illustrate the building’s fascinating history, and the link between its predecessor and successor,” added Mr Day.