A CHURCH is to give up its space to local artists to mark this year’s harvest festival.

The walls of SS Mary and Nicholas, in Littlemore, will be covered in paintings and there will be visual arts and music concerts between October 9 and 17.

Vicar the Rev Margreet Armitstead said she hopes the church will look “amazing”.

She added: “The church will be open during the weekends and at various points during the week, completely filled with all levels of art work gathered up from the local community.

“On three evenings there will be talks on the various arts. Tuesday will be about visual arts, Thursday literary arts and on Saturday there will be a concert with renowned musicians.”

Ms Armitstead added: “The church will look amazing with all the art work, all to celebrate local talent.“ The church has been in the news because of the Pope’s visit to Britain to beatify Cardinal John Henry Newman, who built it.

The Pope is due to beatify Cardinal Newman in Birmingham tomorrow.