A HISTORIC church could be transformed into homes after it was sold at auction for £110,000.

The Grade II listed Holy Trinity Church was sold to a private buyer during an auction at the Etihad Stadium, the home of Manchester City.

There was said to be a number of bids for the church, which is about 150-years-old, prompted by the guide price being slashed to £95,000.

Following the auction, Tim Lamb, a surveyor at Pugh and Company in partnership with The Auction People, which handled the sale, said the church would most likely be used for residential purposes.

It would not be the first church in Bury to be transformed into homes, after the former St Paul's church in Parsonage Street, which had been ravaged by fire, was given a £3.1 million revamp and converted into 22 luxury apartments.

Mr Lamb said: "It was a private buyer on the day who had not expressed interest before the auction, so it might have been on a bit of a whim on the day, which does happen on occasions.

"I would imagine in all likelihood it would probably be used for some sort of residential use, but it is just a case of waiting to see what happens now.

"There was quite a bit of interest on the day, there were quite a few bids. We dropped the price in the week prior to the auction, which always helps. It is a psychological thing for people, knowing they are paying less than £100,000."

The church, in Spring Street, had an original listed price of £350,000. The 5.500 sq ft building was declared redundant in 2010, and had been put up for sale by a private buyer.

Any future development on the site would be constrained by the building's listed status, which protects the external make-up of the building.