A woman celebrated her 101st birthday on September, possibly making her the oldest churchgoer in Barnet.

Dorothy Start, a great grandmother and member of St John's United Reformed Church in New Barnet, celebrated her 101st birthday on September 17.

The New Barnet pensioner has received awards for her voluntary work with Girl Guides, the Women's Institute in Barnet and the Inner Wheel, and was featured in an Age UK campaign, where she told older people to "seize the day".

She said: "I think you have to accept what you have and keep cheerful in life. The people who are the loneliest are the people who are always moaning and groaning about things and they don’t join any groups.

"As for young people, I think so long as you keep cheerful , they don’t mind. I’ve never felt any handicap being old and being with younger people."

Ms Start also recommends joining local groups as an important way to keep active, with her husband also having be a member of the Rotary Club, while she has done Scottish dancing for 60 years.

She added: "It’s good for your head. I think that’s why I’ve still got a good memory. It’s also good for your bones."

Ms Start is also a big fan of travelling, going to Hawaii every year and having spent her 101st in France with family and friends.

Rev Julian Templeton, minister of St John’s United Reformed Church in Somerset Road, New Barnet, said: “ Dorothy is our oldest church member and she is a remarkable person, an inspiration to us all."

So is Dorothy the oldest churchgoer in Barnet? If you know an older churchgoer, let us know on jenny.desborough@newsquest.co.uk