MORE than 40 years of dedicated service to a small West Somerset village community has been recognised by King Charles in his first Birthday Honours List.

A British Empire Medal (BEM) has been awarded to Christopher Robin Rutt – known as Robbie by everybody in Kilve.

Eighty-five-year-old Mr Rutt receives the honour for ‘services to the community in Kilve’.

Mr Rutt was landlord of the village’s Hood Arms public house until his retirement in 1995 and was always known by local people as somebody who could be relied upon for help when it was needed.

Since ‘retirement’, he served for 20 years as a parish councillor and as editor and distributor of the Kilve News newsletter for 25 years.

He is still St Mary’s Church parochial church council (PCC) treasurer after 28 years in the post, and has a host of other formal and informal initiatives to his name which have all helped to improve village life.

His PCC role meant he was responsible for the restoration and renovation of the grade two listed parish church, for which he raised more than £200,000 through a combination of fund-raising events, grants, business and enterprise donations, and other charitable sources.

Since the restoration 25 years ago, Mr Rutt has run an annual antiques and collectors fair to fund the church’s maintenance costs, raising more than £4,000 a year from it.

Mr Rutt said he felt ‘quite humbled’ by the BEM award.

He said: “All the things I have done in my life, where people say I have gone beyond the call of duty, I do voluntarily.

“I always said when you retire, you have to start work, you cannot just sit around and do nothing.

“I had a very happy and very successful time with my business at the Hood Arms, not least because the village supported me 101 per cent.

“Because of that, I said I wanted to give something back to my fellow residents for what they had given me.

“Hence, I took on these various roles in the community.”

Mr Rutt has been at the forefront of organising community events, particularly fund-raising activities in support of village goals, and led the organising of celebrations for the late Queen Elizabeth’s Platinum Jubilee last year, and typically serves as Master of Ceremonies at local events.

He has organised fund-raising for the Quantock Food Cupboard food bank, increasing his efforts to help during the Covid pandemic when demand rose.

In addition, he has been involved in a range of other local organisations in Kilve with philanthropic and community safety aims, as well as recreational purposes.

They include Kilve and Holford Cars community transport initiative, road safety group Speedwatch, Neighbourhood Watch, and Kilve Golfing Society.

Mr Rutt and other golfers still play twice a month, usually at the nine-hole course in Cannington, and also taking in 18 holes in Minehead and elsewhere.

He said: “I find it difficult to play 18 holes, I must say, but I still endeavour to play golf.”

His BEM will be presented by the Lord Lieutenant of Somerset, Mohammed Saddiq, who is the King’s representative in the county.

Later, Mr Rutt will be invited to a Garden Party in Buckingham Palace, which will be the second one he has attended after former Lord Lieutenant Lady Elizabeth Gass took him in 2002.

Mr Rutt said: “I know there is quite a lot of talk about the honours list and honours for people who just do a job, and I do query whether the word ‘Empire’ is the right word to use.

“But for people of my ilk who give and help their fellow men and do a little extra, the ordinary person in the street, if they can be given a pat on the back, that is very nice.”