AN ICONIC church that was filled with waist-high flood waters on Boxing Day is set to re-open next week.

The Radcliffe Parish Church of St Mary, in Church Green, was among the worst-affected locations hit by the devastating floods, which caused thousands of pounds worth of damage and left priceless artefacts in ruins.

Specialist cleaning teams have spent months working to restore the historic building and local residents are now being invited to join in the final stages of the clean-up before the first service is held on Sunday, May 1.

The church will be open each afternoon next week, from 1.30pm to 7.30pm, starting on Monday, April 25. Volunteers are asked to bring their own clothes, mops, buckets, dustpans, and brushes, but cleaning products will be provided.

The Rev Carol Hayden said: "The support I have had from people has just been incredible and I would like to thank everyone for their help. After all the doom and gloom, the community spirit here is what has really shone through.

"I have cried at people's generosity. I had an asylum seeker give me a quarter of his money one week because he said it was a gift to God.

"There are hundreds of stories like that and over the next 12 months we will be having people talk about their experiences of the floods in church."

Parishioners will only have access to the main body of the church, with significant work still needed to repair other damaged areas in the Grade 1 listed building.

She added: "I was inundated with people offering their help to clean the church, but we had to get all of the specialist stuff done first. This week we will be having the cellar industrially pumped and the big heater will be taken out so that people can come into church next week.

"We will only be able to go in the main part of the church, as the meeting room and the kitchen area are nowhere near ready. We are opening a lot earlier than I thought we would, but if we waited until everything was done then it would be September or October before we are back.

"The church belongs to the community and we want to let them back in as soon as we can.

"There is a real love for the church, even from people who might not be here every week."