AN HISTORIC church is to get a massive facelift after being granted funding by English Heritage.

Tyldesley Top Chapel has been a dominant town centre feature opposite the town's market square since it opened as the Lady Huntingdon Chapel in 1789.

Soon work is due to start on re-roofing the chapel which will entail replacing the Yorkshire stone roof flags and also the roof glazing.

"Unfortunately most of the original stone roof was ruined when repairs were made with felt and tar. We have been granted £89,000 from English heritage and that has been boosted by £14,000 from Virador in landfill tax. We hope the roof work will be completed by June 1," said Pastor John Wilson, who has been minister there for 14 years.

Refurbishment work is to be carried out in three phases.

Roofing, guttering and repainting first, then leaded windows will be replaced and finally the listed building will have new doors which will be replicas of the 18th century originals.

Interior renovation will cost £60,000 covering new carpets, plastering, and redecorating ceiling and walls which have suffered because of the leaking roof.

Access points will also be created facilitating future roof maintenance.

Now a meeting place for Pentecostal followers the church gained its "Top Chapel" nickname many years ago to distinguish it from another place of worship south of the town.

Nowadays the Top Chapel is a focal point for a range of activities in the Tyldesley area.

Five years ago the church bought the Upper George Street "tech" building which had been axed as an annexe of Wigan and Leigh College. As Tyldesley Community Education College it has been a real success offering courses ranging from IT to bible study to doctorate level. There's also a playgroup and extended care facility backed by SureStart.

Currently the college is undergoing a £140,000 revamp including roofing and wet rot eradication.

Pastor Wilson said: "The College has been a real eye-opener. People are coming to our church because they see the Top Chapel as being active in the community. They see we are doing something."