A WOLVERCOTE church will have cause to celebrate this Sunday as it completes the latest phase of an ambitious £475,000 redevelopment.

St Peter’s, on First Turn, Wolvercote, will be opening its new parish rooms to the public in the presence of the Bishop of Oxford.

Dubbed St Peter’s Rooms, they will be a meeting place open to all members of the Wolvercote community and beyond.

Rev Dr Mark Butchers, vicar of St Peter’s Church, said: “We felt Wolvercote’s needs have changed considerably in recent times.

“Upgraded facilities were needed to cater for the growing local community and an influx of young families.

“We also wanted to provide formal and informal opportunities for people to expand their social circles, hopefully overcoming the growing feeling of isolation in modern society.

“When funds are available, we hope to build a glass corridor, linking St Peter’s Rooms into the church itself, to extend the useable space further.”

The official opening takes place on Sunday, September 11 at 11:45am. Visitors will be invited to explore the rooms between 2pm and 4pm.

At the opening, the Rt Revd John Pritchard, the Bishop of Oxford, will unveil a commemorative plaque and help members of the Children’s Church to bury a time capsule.

The new Parish Rooms, which join the recently renovated Victorian Old School Rooms to form St Peter’s Rooms, are constructed out of local materials and topped by three glass lanterns.

Cash was raised by the church’s fundraising committee with the help of the congregation.

Donations were also received from many foundations, organisations and individuals such as WREN, a not-for-profit grant awarding business, Oxfordshire County Council, and the Tolkien Trust.

Peter Bridges, the committee’s chairman, said: “When you think about the economic climate, we are pleased with the money raised.

“We have done this in response to what the church and the community wanted.”