A MUSIC teacher has been installed as the new Mormon bishop of the Rossendale Valley -- at the age of 27.

Bishop Samuel Petchey was consecrated at a ceremony at the recently-refurbished Church of Jesus Christ of Latter-Day Saints chapel in Rawtenstall.

The event was a double celebration as the congregation was renamed the Rossendale Valley Ward, reflecting the wider area the chapel serves.

The chapel, built in the early 1960s, was rededicated following a refurbishment programme.

Bishop Petchey addressed his congregation for the first time and said: "I'm here to serve you, but I need you to help me too as there will be a role for everyone to play as we grow together."

Bishop Petchey lives in Rawtenstall with his wife Vicky and their two young daughters, Amelia, two, and Annie, one.

Vicky, also 27, added: "Samuel is a young bishop but he is dedicated to the church and has been a church member all his life."

The church has a lay clergy and Bishop Petchey will serve the local members of the church while holding down his full-time employment as a music teacher in York.

Assisting Bishop Petchey are two counsellors, Stuart Oliver of Haslingden and Stewart Butler of Bacup.