A TOUR of Oxford's biggest housing estate provided plenty of inspiration to a delegation from Modern Art Oxford on a whirlwind tour.

Head of programme Emma Ridgway(cor) and head of operations Helen Shilton took a day out from the gallery in Pembroke Street to be shown around Blackbird Leys last week by councillor Linda Smith, the city council's new board member for leisure.

Ms Smith said she organised the event as she wanted to see gallery staff "really up their game" in engaging with different communities in the city.

She said: "Not many people we met had been to the gallery and quite a few didn't know it existed, or where it was.

"This was just about getting ideas and making contacts and it's fantastic how committed they are at the gallery. I'm really interested to see what they come up with."

On Wednesday, June 8 the three took a drive around the Leys, stopping off to meet art students at The Oxford Academy and chat with the Friendleys elderly social group.

They also met with the heads of the Clockhouse and youth projects run by the Leys Community Development Initiative (CDI), enjoyed lunch at a new cafe in the Church of the Holy Family and paid a surprise visit to the Pathway recycled wood workshop in Dunnock Way, currently a hive of activity and in the process of rebranding.

Ms Smith added: "They were very impressed with some of the products there and something could come out of it."

Between 2007 and 2012 a series of projects for Modern Art Oxford were carried out by contemporary artists alongside people in Rose Hill.

The results included drop-in art sessions for male carers, called 'Saturdads', a semi-detached house turned into a giant musical instrument and a 72-minute film called Déjà Vu.

Ms Ridgway said something similar could be on the cards for Blackbird Leys but it would depend on funding. The gallery is leased rent-free from Oxford City Council to the tune of about £70,000 each year.

She said: "At the moment this was simply a scoping visit. We had a really great day, met lots of interesting people and got a sense of the activities other people were doing.

"Oxford is a city that seems characterised by different communities living in different places, not really being aware of each other.

"The arts and public galleries are places where people can come together and when Modern Art Oxford was founded 50 years ago, its intention was to bring in different people that might not have seen it before."