THE latest technology is being used to offer new ways to explore an award-winning churchyard in East Oxford.

SS Mary and John Churchyard in Cowley Road has been at the heart of a regeneration project for more than a decade.

Volunteers and parishioners have spent hours clearing the area, encouraging wildlife and making it a more attractive place to be.

Now Oxford Brookes University student Mike Jackson has created four interactive nature and history trails to offer ways to find out more about the churchyard.

People will be able to download an ‘app’ straight to their smartphones so they can explore each of the educational trails.

Mr Jackson, 39, said: “The people who run the churchyard project wanted some specific trails created that they could involve school kids in.

“I’m creating them and hoping to get them up and running by the first week of September so they are available for the school year.”

The trails, which will cover flora, wildlife and conservation, and history, along with a combined trail incorporating sections of the other three, will have 10 to 12 points of interest. At each point there will be educational information, photographs, trivia and a quiz question.

As well as people being able to access the trails using smartphones, at least three handheld devices will be available with the trails already downloaded.

They will be aimed at children aged roughly between nine and 12.

Mr Jackson, who is married with a 19- year-old daughter, said: “One of the challenges has been trying to make them vaguely interesting for children aged 10 or 11. I’m trying to get the right balance of information.”

He is also creating projects for schools to run alongside the trails so that as well as enjoying a walk around the churchyard, the activity could be part of their wider studies Mr Jackson said: “In terms of wildlife and flora and fauna, it’s incredible diverse, which is why we have created these separate trails.

“The people running the churchyard project have put a lot of effort into understanding the local fauna.

“It’s not just the pretty stuff like the birds and the bees, but all the way down to bacteria and insects.”

Mr Jackson, who is about to start the second year of a BSc in environmental science, has created the trails for work experience to support his studies.