A 91-year-old man has helped to save an historic church which has been part of his life since childhood.

Bert Hobden, of Overhill Drive, Brighton, has pledged to donate thousands of pounds to St Andrew's Church in Waterloo Street, Hove, where he was a choirboy as a child and later married.

St Andrew's no longer holds services and since it does not have a functioning heating system or public toilets it has been unable to get a licence to hold events such as weddings.

There has been a lot of fundraising over the past few months but it was too cold to use the church in the winter and it has been struggling to remain open.

The recently-formed Friends of St Andrew's was told to raise £10,000 by the Churches Conservation Trust which would give the further £20,000 needed for the heating.

Mr Hobden was born and raised near the church and knew the Friends needed just under £5,000 to reach its target and announced he would pledge the sum.

He said: "The church means a lot to me. I wanted to give the money partly out of sentiment. I was married and my two children were christened there. I was also a choirboy at the church for ten years.

"The interior of the church is beautiful and there is such a lot of history. It means so much to me to keep it going."

Jo Heard, chair of fund-raising for St Andrew's said: "It is the greatest news. We had already raised £2,864 - mainly through a sponsored walk by Bert - £2,500 has been donated by local businessman Mark Peake and now Bert has pledged the remainder.

"The church will shut from August to have the heating installed and will hopefully open in time for a Christmas carol concert.

"Bert had tears in his eyes, and so did everyone else, as he told us he prayed there as a child, was married there and both his children were christened there. He felt it was a way he could give a little something back."

Chris Jones, secretary of the Friends, said: "There was spontaneous applause when Bert made his announcement. It is very kind."

Mr Hobden, a grandfather of four and great-grandfather of one, whose family has a long history in the city, added: "This is not the end of the battle. We need to keep raising money to keep the heating running. We need to pay the gas bill! There are also other facilities to be installed."

The church dates back to 1828 and was designed by Sir Charles Barry who also designed St Peter's, Brighton's parish church, and went on to rebuild the Houses of Parliament after a fire in 1834.

Church records show that Charles Dickens, Lewis Carroll and the Prince Regent worshipped there. In July, workmen uncovered a stash of gin bottles in what is thought to be the remnants of a secret tunnel leading from the church to a pub across the road.

The church is also the only one in Hove which has a crypt.

It holds 55 bodies buried in leather coffins.

To donate to the Friends of St Andrew's, contact Ellie Sampson on 01273 733455.