Malcolm Fisher, former company secretary of the Norfolk Churches Trust, receives MBE honour from Buckingham Palace

Malcolm Fisher's MBE. Picture: Rebecca Murphy (Image: Archant)

Malcolm Fisher, who lives in Laxfield, near Eye, was made an MBE when he was recognised for his services to heritage through the trust after being named in the Queen's birthday honours list in 2016.

The 76-year-old was approached by the trust in 1995 to become its treasurer, before being asked to instead become company secretary.

He was instrumental in helping parishes raise funds to protect historic churches, with Norfolk having the highest concentration of medieval churches in the world at 659.

Mr Fisher was joined by his two daughters, Caroline and Amanda, stepson Malcolm and his wife Jill, and a friend at the ceremony on Friday, January 27.

He said: 'It was one of the proudest moments of my life. It was a very pleasant experience. It was nice to get it from Prince Charles, as he is the patron of the trust.

'The atmosphere was fantastic, it really was. Meeting the other recipients and talking to them was a very interesting experience.'

A former churchwarden of All Saints Church in Laxfield, Mr Fisher helped to put together a figure of how much it would cost over a five-year period to carry out repair work on the churches which most urgently needed it.

He would look at reports given to him by churches across the county and the work they required. He would then guide those involved with the particular buildings where to find the funding they needed.

Mr Fisher said although he is pleased to be made an MBE, there were other people who helped with the work he conducted.

He said: 'It involved so many other people.

'I am grateful to them and I thank them for their cooperation in achieving, or trying to achieve, the maintenance, restoration and conservation of the churches.

'It really brings it home to me what has been achieved.'

Mr Fisher retired from the trust in 2014 but said he does miss it.