Traditionally, they are hidden under the pews in the dark, out of mind, out of sight and usually unremarkable.

But not in the Church of the Holy Trinity in Bere Alston, where the kneelers have seen the light of day, deservedly so because they are works of art created by the congregation.

The kneelers were placed on display for a week for visitors, who have been unanimous in their praise for the 140 colourful kneelers, unique and engaging in their depiction of aspects of village life.

Worshippers have been hard at work deploying their tapestry skills over the past 15 years to replace the ‘dull’ small kneelers with, instead, with tapestry pictures of the post office, school, Holy Trinity itself and interior aspects of the church, various Queen Elizabeth anniversaries and several featuring the avocet symbol of the sailing club.

Creative churchgoers were provided with materials, including donated tapestry wool and hard-wearing carpet wool from Axminster for the sides, for a small fee.

The wool was provided in a jumble of colours and had to be sorted in a church member’s sitting room, ‘aided’ by a new playful puppy, before the kneelers could be started.

Sue Belfield, who led the kneeler project, said: “Everyone had free rein on their designs, so each kneeler is personal and they’ve produced wonderful colourful designs. We’ve had so many visitors who’ve come to see the kneelers and have been full of praise. There’s lots which are of the village, such as the lunch club, the post office and the school. They’re full of character.

“Each kneeler takes many hours of work.”

Because each involves a lot of work, some are the work of several people and Sue herself sometimes does the finishing touches at the end.

“We hope to have them on display again next year. It makes the church so much brighter,” she said.

Sue’s post office design was dedicated to the memory of village postie Leo Dawson and his dog Tia Maria who both attended Holy Trinity every Sunday. Another kneeler remembers beloved church reader Harry Sutcliffe.