The home of arts and culture in the town has received a boost of £53,000 to ensure top names continue to perform in the borough.

The St Mary’s Arts Trust successfully bid for funding from both Arts Council England and the Kent Arts Investment Fund to help support Revelation St Mary’s impressive programme of events.

With the new funding secured, the arts trust can now embark on the second stage of its mission to make St Mary’s a beacon for the arts in Ashford.

The Rev Colin Preece, chairman of the arts trust and the Vicar of St Mary’s, said: “This is fantastic news.

“We have all worked so hard to deliver an interesting and engaging arts programme for our community, now we have more support to deliver an even broader scope and regularity of events - so watch this space.”

Over the summer of 2011, St Mary’s Church in Ashford town centre underwent a £1.8m revamp to transform it into a performance space.

Since that time, a number of top acts performed at the venue, including The Lightning Seeds and Fairport Convention.