REPRESENTATIVES?of St James’ Chapel in Okehampton have been presented with a cheque from the town council to repair its clock.

George Maddaford, chair of trustees of the Ecclesiastical Trust, Charlotte Dixon, the churchwarden and trustee and the Rev Stephen Cook, were given £500 from Okehampton Town Council, which was presented by Okehampton Mayor Cllr Jan Goffey.

St James’ Chapel is a Chapel of Ease and an ecumenical chapel that belongs to the town of Okehampton.

The chapel has stood for many years. The people of Okehampton, through the Lord of the Manor Reginal Courtenay, appealed to the Pope in 1178 that the parish church was too far to walk to in bad weather and the old and infirm could not attend, so permission was granted to build St James in the centre of the town.

Originally, this would have been a wooden building with a thatched roof.

It was rebuilt of stone in the 14th century and there is still a 14th century bell in the medieval tower.