A METHODIST church has been shortlisted for a national award to be presented in London in October.

Marske-by-the-Sea Methodist Church, in Marske, near Redcar, has fought off stiff competition to get through to the final round of Biffaward Awards 2004 in the community indoor amenity category.

The church, which is used by the wider community, was awarded a grant of £30,605 last year by the Biffaward, a multi-million pound environment fund that uses landfill tax credits donated by Biffa Waste Services.

The money was used to repair and refurbish the church by replacing the original windows with UPVC double glazed units, by installing a toilet for the disabled, upgrading and improving existing women's and men's toilet facilities.

The achievement of projects supported by the fund is acknowledged by the award ceremony which highlights the diversity of environmental work undertaken.

Martin Bettington, chairman of Biffaward, said: "This is the sixth year of our awards and the standard of projects shortlisted just gets better and better.

"The awards are a great way to demonstrate the successes of projects made possible by funding from Biffaward, and enforce the importance of the Landfill Tax Credit Scheme."

In December 1997, Biffa Waste Services agreed to donate landfill tax credits to the Royal Society of Wildlife Trusts to administer under the fund name Biffaward.

Grants made from the fund amount to more than £58m, supporting many environmental projects.