A high-ranking member of the church has been honoured by the Queen for his “faithful service” to young people in his community.

Archbishop Costakis C. Evangelou will receive an MBE after being selected for the Queen’s award for voluntary service.

Mr Evangelou appeared in this year’s honours list most notably for helping to found and support the Edmonton Eagles Amateur Boxing Club which serves as a positive place for young people to better themselves.

The club was set up in 2004 and now exists at the Montagu Recreation Ground. It is largely supported through various organisations such as the Jack Petchey foundation, council funding, events and user subscriptions.

Speaking about his MBE, Mr Evangelou said: “It was a very humbling honour to be recognised.

“It was a big surprise to me to receive a letter from the Prime Minister’s office saying I had been put forward, then appearing in Queen’s honours list.

“I believe the actual ceremony will be in February.”

Speaking about the Edmonton Eagles, the former teacher added: “We work with the local community and different groups and organisations such as the police to help mentor, train and build up young people to have a more positive view of life.

“We exist partly to disqualify the gang culture and to give people more options to succeed in life.”

A spokesperson for the boxing club said: “All of us at Edmonton Eagles are delighted that our head coach and honorary secretary Archbishop Costakis C. Evangelou was honoured in the Queen’s New Year’s honours with an MBE for his years of faithful service to young people in north London.

“This is such a wonderful award for an outstanding selfless person in our community and is on top of the prestigious Queen’s award for voluntary service that the club received in 2015.”