A software developer who lives near Sandbach is poised to take part in more metal detecting days - after unearthing a hoard of gold coins worth around £30,000, dating back to Henry VIII's reign.

Peter Astley who lives in Haslington, has only been metal detecting for a year and puts his luck into finding nine immaculate half-sovereign pieces partly down to an 1800s horseshoe hanging on the outside of his house which he found on a local search.

Mr Astley found the horseshoe and a bronze age axe head during a local walk a while back and has also found a variety of other things from rings to buckles as well.

Mr Astley puts his lucky find down the 18th century horseshoe hanging outside his home.

He says his greatest find is the hoard of gold coins he came across during a rally with the Midlands Detecting Days at Ashcombe Park Hall near Cheddleton in Staffordshore.

The coins range from the last issue of Henry VIII (1544 – 1547) to the second phase of his son Edward VI (from 12th April 1549).

"We'd been there a while when I decided to have a look at another area. There were a couple of mounds and I went over to one. I got a signal and then found two gold hammered coins in a clump of soil," he said.

(Photo: Peter Astley)

"I got another signal and found the others. I've never found anything quite like this before. One idea we have is they were a payment for a job."

Years ago, the hall was called Botham Hall and someone in the family was linked to the church, so Mr Astley says there is a possibility that due to religious upheaval in the 16th century, the coins may have been hidden.

(Photo: Deborah Bowyer/Nub News)

Another thought is that the coins were stolen by a highwayman as there was a coaching house, cobbled pathways and a roadway leading away from the main hall.

Mr Astley, who works at Datastor Systems in Congleton, took the coins home and registered them with the coroner. They are now with a museum in Liverpool until their fate is decided.

(Photo: Peter Astley)

"It's amazing to think how old the coins are," said Mr Astley. "We're waiting to hear what will happen to them and whether a museum will want to buy them."

Mr Astley sometimes goes twice a week on local detecting sprees and researches coins and history to help him with his finds.

Some of Mr Astley's other finds. (Photo: Deborah Bowyer/Nub News)

He has made a Boots photo book of the Ashcombe Park Hall hoard so people can see it. The link is here

He said: "I've never found anything like this before. I knew they were something special when I found the first two."