THE congregation at a fire-damaged church hope to be back in the building this Sunday to worship.

Messages of support have been sent from Archbishop of Canterbury Rowan Williams and Colin Fletcher, Bishop of Dorchester, after fire ripped through St Mary the Virgin Church in Charlbury. The Archbishop said the 900-year-old church would be in his prayers.

The fire, which started in the oak timber roof on Sunday, caused damage to the kitchen and meeting room area and also the main roof of the chancel.

There are also large holes in both where fireman had to cut through to get at the blaze. The clean-up began yesterday morning when air scrubbers, fans and de-humidifiers were wheeled in.

Reverend Jan Fielden, from the church, said: “The main area of the church isn’t damaged, just dirty so they hope to clean enough chairs for our usual congregation of 120 by this Sunday.”

Richard Fairhurst, who runs the Charlbury website, said: “There may be opportunities to incorporate into the repairs to our facilities, but this would have to be at our own expense.

“For now, although the damage is extensive, thanks to the prompt and expert actions of the fire brigade, we still have a church.”

Investigators believe the fire, which started in the roof of the chancellery, may have been accidental.

Churchwarden Mike Summers said he believed it may have been started by a faulty light.

Sixty firefighters fought the blaze.