A funeral team took on duties of a very different kind when it went into action to tidy up the graveyard at a Sutton Coldfield church.

Staff colleagues from The Midcounties Co-operative Funeralcare swapped their smart suits for gardening gear in a day-long community challenge at St James Hill, Mere Green Road.

Volunteers from Sutton and across the West Midlands cut back vegetation, cleared paths, restored some of the sunken graves to make the ground level and mowing easier and redefined the edges of some of the old headstones.

Team leader Jane Dundon, manager at Midcounties Sutton Funeral Home, said: “It was hard work but we enjoyed ourselves and we managed to dodge the showers. We were pleased with the results and the church showed their thanks by giving us fish and chips.

“We know this church through organising funerals there and offered our help. We carried out a similar challenge in December. Midcounties volunteer challenges are a great way of helping the community and getting together to build on our own team skills.”

Curate at St James Hill, Rev Adele Rees said: “Their help has been invaluable because the churchyard is too big for us to care for on our own. It makes more of the graves accessible for the public.”

Midcounties is a member-owned society and committed to providing hands-on support for the community. It has an extensive colleague volunteer programme that takes on all types of challenges, which not only benefit local people and organisations but also help those involved to develop personally and as a team.