ONE of Oxford’s iconic dreaming spires has reopened to the public after the first stage of a £5m refurbishment was completed.

Visitors with a head for heights can once again climb the tower of the University Church of St Mary the Virgin in High Street.

Work at the historic church involves repairing the facade and stonework, along with work on the interior.

The tower renovation is now complete after being closed for six months.

The whole scheme is set to finish by Christmas, with the main section of the church in use again by the start of December. The garden in Radcliffe Square should reopen in the autumn.

Work is also being carried out to The Vaults Cafe under the church, with a new lift being added, along with a new public toilet.

Canon Brian Mountford, the vicar of St Mary’s, said it was a relief to see some of the effort start to pay off, but warned of more disruption to come.

He said: “It is an exciting time but it is getting a little bit wearing and frustrating on a day-to-day basis.

“Obviously we can’t complain, as the end product will be totally worth it.

“But as of this Sunday we are going to start holding two Sunday morning services, as we will be unable to accommodate our whole congregation at once.”

First recorded in the Domesday Book in 1086, the church was the first home of the university and attracts 300,000 visitors a year.

The Grade I listed building was given a £3.4m Heritage Lottery Grant to preserve it for future generations. The total cost of work is likely to exceed £5.5m, with additional money coming from a fundraising campaign, Oxford University and the Clore Duffield Foundation.

Mr Mountford said: “As a congregation we will now have to move from the main bit of the church, the nave, into the chancel. Our services attract between 120 and 150 people each Sunday but the chancel can only take 95.

“So we will be running a service at 9am and then another at 10.30am for the foreseeable future.”

A new stained glass window above the new entrance will focus on the university’s early years.

Mr Mountford said: “It is very impressive to see the work completed, the statues inside look wonderful. I think this is a promise of things to come.”