Selby Abbey officials were celebrating today after being awarded £300,000 by English Heritage towards their restoration appeal.

The abbey has hit the Heritage Lottery Fund jackpot, only two years after English Heritage turned down its first grant application.

Today's new cash announcement means that urgently-needed work can now go ahead to renew and restore crumbling stonework on the north side of the tenth century abbey.

The north side project, which is the second phase of the £10 million restoration appeal, will cost about half a million pounds, and work is now expected to start this summer.

The remaining £200,000 has been raised by Selby Abbey Trust through a mixture of fundraising events and donations.

Official at the abbey - hailed as Yorkshire's finest Romanesque church and one of the North's architectural jewels - were furious when English Heritage rejected its grant application two years ago, claiming they had been "snubbed". But today, the abbey's vicar, the Rev Keith Jukes, said they were absolutely delighted with the English Heritage grant.

He said: "It's good news not just for the abbey but for Selby that we are preserving this magnificent building for future generations.

"This work is not just for the benefit of local worshippers but will attract more tourists and visitors. The abbey helps to bring people into the town, which has to be good for the local economy."

Mr Jukes said work on the west front - which was phase one of the appeal - would be completed in a few days, after being shrouded in plastic sheeting for the last nine months.

He said: "The restoration of the west front stonework has also cost about £500,000. It is looking absolutely wonderful and when the scaffolding comes down at the beginning of next week, people will be able to see the west front in all its glory once again."

Mr Jukes said they were now going to start raising money for phase three, which was the east end restoration work. This would also cost £500,000

He said: "We need £5 million to complete the urgent restoration of stonework and a further £5 million for non-urgent work on the building's fabric."

Updated: 15:11 Tuesday, February 19, 2002