Parishioners in Bradford on Avon are celebrating after a clock on their local landmark church was finally put back in place following a £16,000 repair and restoration project.

The newly-regilded fingers and dial of the clock on the spire of the Grade II* listed Christ Church were put back up on Tuesday and Wednesday - 160 years after it was first installed.

Wiltshire Times: Dan Noble steadies the clock face as it starts the climb up to be put back in pride of place on the Christ Church spire. Photo: Trevor Porter 70274-5Dan Noble steadies the clock face as it starts the climb up to be put back in pride of place on the Christ Church spire. Photo: Trevor Porter 70274-5 (Image: Trevor Porter)

Specialists from clock makers, Smith of Derby, are refitting the clock mechanism ready for it to work again on Thursday and the event has been marked by a special two-day celebration.

Becky Strike, the Community Outreach Project Officer for Discover Christ Church, said: “It has been such a wonderful event. We have had more than 100 visitors over the course of the two days.

“Three classes from the nearby Christ Church Primary School came to see the clock being put back, and Bradford on Avon’s mayor Cllr Katie Vigar also visited on Wednesday afternoon.

Wiltshire Times: Reverend Tessa Mann blesses the clock faces before they are put back. Photo: Trevor Porter 70274-4 Reverend Tessa Mann blesses the clock faces before they are put back. Photo: Trevor Porter 70274-4 (Image: Trevor Porter)

“Our associate priest, Reverend Tessa Mann, gave a blessing over the clock before it was put back.

“We also took the fingerprints of everyone who was there to put on a clockface on paper to commemorate the event.

“We are so incredibly pleased and the atmosphere during the celebration has been amazing. It has been incredibly emotional.”

Wiltshire Times: Edward Yeomans, aged nine, a pupil at Christchurch Primary School, is invited by Becky Strike to place his coloured fingerprint on the clock artwork to mark the historic occasion. Photo: Trevor Porter 70274-10Edward Yeomans, aged nine, a pupil at Christchurch Primary School, is invited by Becky Strike to place his coloured fingerprint on the clock artwork to mark the historic occasion. Photo: Trevor Porter 70274-10 (Image: Trevor Porter)

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The clock was installed on the early Victorian church tower in 1863 at a cost of £175 and was given a timely facelift as part of an ongoing restoration project.

The church and its clock are a local landmark, as Christ Church stands in a commanding position on the north side of the town.

The clock stopped working after the weather took its toll and the damage was not just limited to a broken mechanism and motor.

Wiltshire Times: The weathered finger and dial of the Christ Church clock prior to their restoration. Photo: Trevor Porter 70274-1The weathered finger and dial of the Christ Church clock prior to their restoration. Photo: Trevor Porter 70274-1 (Image: Trevor Porter)

The clock face and dials were also extremely weathered as they had taken a battering from the elements over the years.

But with significant funding from National Lottery Heritage Fund the historic landmark has been restored to its former glory with new gold leaf designed to last 100 years.

Volunteers at Christ Church visited Smith of Derby to apply some of the fresh gold leaf to the clock.

You can find out more about the community project on Facebook and Instagram, or by emailing admin@discoverchristchurch.org.uk