Oxford is one of twelve cities in England that has been awarded a share of £250,000 to develop an innovative new ‘augmented reality’ project to bring its heritage to life.

Augmented reality uses technology such as smart phones and tablets to superimpose computer-generated imagery on to the real world.

Thanks to Discover England and Visit England funding, the city’s iconic Bodleian Library will be brought to life with the app allowing visitors to experience the museum like never before.

Hayley Beer-Gamage, Chief Executive at Experience Oxfordshire who will deliver the project welcomed the ‘exciting’ plans.

She said: “This is an exciting and innovative project that will enable us to bring Oxford’s Bodleian Library to life in new ways, supporting our aim to reach new audiences and showcase the city’s iconic heritage.”

VisitEngland Chief Executive Sally Balcombe said: “Following a rigorous applications process we are delighted to work closely with those excellent winners on building world-class ‘bookable’ tourism products showcasing the best of England to international and domestic visitors.

“This is a great way for the project to showcase their inspirational heritage offer, harnessing the power of technology to capture the imagination of a new market.”

The app release date has not yet been confirmed.