CHURCHGOERS and children in Church of England schools will be able to write personal messages to the Queen to mark the Diamond Jubilee.

The personal messages of school children and churchgoers will be compiled in a leather-bound book which will be presented to the Lord Lieutenant of Devon at the Jubilee Garden Party held in the Bishop's gardens at the end of May.

He will personally hand the 'Big Book of Thanks' to the Queen.

The book will include an introductory message from the Bishop of Exeter, handwritten in ink pen, and the Diamond Jubilee prayer.

It will go on tour around the diocese during March and April, and will be available for people to sign at St James' Chapel in Okehampton from March 12 to March 19.

Pages will also be distributed to other parishes on request to ensure that everyone has a chance to offer their personal messages.

Bishop Michael Langrish launched the book's tour by handing a chapter of paper to the Rev Preb Nigel Guthrie, of Crediton, on Tuesday.

The pages will spend one week in Crediton, on display for parishioners and school children to sign, before travelling to Barnstaple, Okehampton, Plymouth and Torquay.

The pages will be on display at Exeter Cathedral from Saturday April 28 to Tuesday May 15, ready to be signed by members of the public. It will then be bound by the Exeter Bookbinders before being formally handed over as part of the diocese's jubilee celebrations.