BELLS have returned to a medieval Hereford church following repair work which cost thousands of pounds.

The tower and spire of All Saints church in the city centre is home to a ring of eight bells – cast at the famous Gloucester foundry by Thomas Rudhall in 1769.

They have rung for a number of notable events in the city's history and are particularly associated with Nelson, who visited Hereford in 1802 and was made a freeman of the city.

But in 2013, bell ringers discovered that the fifth bell was cracked and were forced to stop ringing it to prevent the crack from spreading.

After a £12,000 fundraising effort, along with the treble which also required repair work, the bell was removed and taken to the John Taylor and Co in Loughborough.

The treble was refurbished and the fifth was stripped down and sent to Soundweld in Cambridge to be welded before being returned to Taylor's to be refurbished.

They returned to Hereford on June 10 and were reinstated in a gruelling process by engineers from Pembleton Bell Hangers and Engineers.

The bells rang all together for the first time on June 16 and then for a service on June 26. They are usually rung for services on the second and fourth Sundays of the month.

Anne Newman, one of the ringers, said: "It's absolutely brilliant to have them back."