THE majestic Westminster Abbey is to hold its first harvest celebration service in more than 45 years — and scouts from South Zeal will have the honour of taking part in the ceremony.

The special harvest celebration service will be held at the abbey on October 16, bringing together 200 special guests from the world of food, agriculture, education, retail and catering, VIPs and members of the media. Eight hundred children from schools, scout, brownie and guide groups will attend.

The 1st South Zeal scout group is one of only five scout groups in Britain chosen to take part. Their harvest box will contain fruit and vegetables they have grown themselves, and jams and chutneys they made themselves, alongside a selection of produce and foodstuffs made in West Devon, provided by local food suppliers.

The group will present their box at the service, and the food will be distributed to members of the community by the Royal Voluntary Service.

Nicki Glanville, one of the group's scout leaders, said: 'It is an honour to be selected and very exciting. 1st South Zeal and 1st Crediton from Mid Devon Scout District have been selected. It will be amazing to represent our local area at such a prestigious national event, and great to be able to showcase local produce and home-grown food.

'The scouts are all very excited, and very keen to see and meet VIPs, celebrity cooks and maybe even a Royal or two!

'They are also looking forward to an exciting trip up to London on the train and tube, and maybe some sightseeing, and we may even have time to visit a museum.

'It really is great we can enable the children to have such amazing experiences. Memories of days like this will stay with them all their lives.

'What is fantastic with this event is that the young people will be able to represent our community, showcase local food producers and hopefully help local businesses reach a wider audience. It's good to give something back to our local community.'

The group is looking for donations of samples from local food producers for their harvest box, and for financial donations to help cover the travel costs, which are roughly £50 per head.

If you would like to help with either cause, please call Nicki and Stuart Glanville on 01837 840574 or e-mail [email protected]">[email protected]

Love British Food, the campaign that organises British Food Fortnight, invited schools and youth organisations in the UK to take part in the tradition of harvest festival by creating a harvest box that celebrates the food produced in their part of the country.