A PARISH church is looking to pipe money into repairs for its 80-year-old organ. Wroughton Parish Church wants to raise £45,000 to rebuild of the organ, which has been played at weddings, funerals and church services since 1927.

John Henderson, director of music at Wroughton Parish Church, said that the work was extremely labour intensive.

"Usually organ repairs take place every 20 to 25 years, while an organ like this should last 100-150 years.

"This repair work involves an entire rebuild of the organ. It is extremely labour intensive. Some of the pipes are 15ft long and they need four people to carry them.

"We will also be making changes so we can actually get access to other parts of the organ. When it was last repaired in 1985 some pipes were cracked, and would have sounded off key had they been played.

"Even now some notes sound odd to the trained ear, but only a trained ear would notice."

The rebuild of the organ is part of a larger project to improve facilities at the church, including the addition of disabled toilets and better wheelchair access.

All the improvements are expected to cost a total of £100,000.

The work on the organ will begin in July and the instrument will be out of action until October when the repairs are scheduled to be completed. Mr Henderson is looking into a temporary replacement for the organ until then.

To raise money for part of the project fundraisers are inviting people to sponsor a pipe.

Each sponsored pipe will be marked for posterity, bearing the name of the donor or someone it is dedicated to .

There are 258 pipes, which can be sponsored, including flute, oboe, principal and sesqualtera pipes, ranging in prices from £20 to £100.

Tonight at 7.30pm the church will host a concert by the Anselm Singers from Harrow, London, which will also boost the organ appeal.

Tickets cost £6 for adults and £4 for concessions and are available on the door or by calling 01793 525856.