ST JAMES’s, Piccadilly, in London, has become only the fourth recipient in the country of a gold Eco Church Award.

St James’s was presented with a plaque on 14 October by Andy Atkins, the CEO of A Rocha UK, a Christian conservation charity.

The award is given when a church demonstrates “their care for God’s earth in their everyday work and witness” across five categories: worship and teaching; buildings; land; community and global; and lifestyle.

St James’s won the award for initiatives that included attempting “to use renewable energy, reduce their carbon footprint, create wildlife-friendly areas such as a pond and wetland habitat on their land, and encourage outdoor worship and teaching”.

Mr Atkins said: “It was a great honour to present this award to St James’s, Piccadilly, in recognition of the huge amount of work they have done to care for God’s earth.

“As an inner-city church in the heart of London, we hope that it will encourage other urban churches to realise how much they can care for nature and our environment regardless of their location.”

The three previous winners of a gold award are Hilfield Friary, Dorset; St Catherine’s, Burbage, in Leicester diocese; and St John’s, Leven, in Scotland.

Climate march drumming by members of the congregation of St James’s, Piccadilly, in 2016