A CHURCH will be closed for 'up to 12 weeks' as work is set to start on the £150,000 renovation of a 500-year-old building in Great Harwood.

St Bartholomew’s Church in Great Harwood has received £117,700 of funding from the Heritage Lottery Fund to repair ‘hazards’ at the church, such as its roof, and has raised £30,000 itself.

Work will officially start on Monday, August 14, with workers arriving on 8am and church staff say it will be closed for 'up to 12 weeks' while the work takes.

It will shut following services and weddings on Sunday, August 13, after which everything will be moved out of the way of workmen and covered in dust sheets.

MORE TOP STORIES:

While the church is closed Sunday services will be held at Bank Mill House from August 20, while Wednesday communion will take place at Churchfield House from August 16.

Staff said the church will be treated as a building site for health and safety reasons during this period and there will only be 'minimal access for a limited number of church people' during this time.

Approximately 120 use the church for Sunday service and more use it for baptisms and weddings.