SALISBURY Cathedral volunteers were presented with the Queen's Award.

The cathedral's longest serving volunteers, Ben Elliot and Ann Harries, received the award for voluntary service on behalf of the volunteer team at a special ceremony on Wednesday.

Ben has guided in the Cathedral for 48 years whilst Ann, who joined at the same time (1968) has undertaken a huge range of roles from concert stewarding to tower guiding and embroidery.

The award was presented by Sarah Troughton, Lord-Lieutenant of Wiltshire after Evensong in the Cathedral. It is the highest award a voluntary group can receive in the UK and the equivalent of an individual MBE.

After the ceremony there was a drinks party on the Cathedral’s West lawn, which was attended by well over 300 of the 650 strong volunteer body including representatives from the tomb dusting, embroidery and flower-arranging teams as well as guides, library volunteers, office volunteers and those who assist at services.

The Very Revd June Osborne, Dean of Salisbury said: “Seeing all the volunteers together at Evensong and at the celebration afterwards was a very uplifting sight. These are the individuals who, humbly and loyally, form part of the experience and memory of the Cathedral locally, nationally…and internationally."

Mrs Troughton, Lord Lieutenant of Wiltshire, added: “It was a huge pleasure to present the award to the Salisbury Cathedral Volunteers and to formally recognise their dedicated service in support of the Cathedral and city over many years. They play such a significant and valued role and seeing then all gathered together was a reminder of the scale and range of their work, something of which the Cathedral is justifiably proud.”