A SPECIAL church event for children in Dursley went down a treat - with scores of youngsters turning out to try their hands at various arts and crafts.

St James' Church, in Dursley, held its regular Messy Church event, an opportunity for children to play and socialise, on Saturday, February 21.

The event saw children of a range of ages from the local area engage in a variety of artsy activities.

The groups drew, made artwork with sticky seeds and designed their own wooly sheep, treasure boxes and prodigal son biscuits.

Messy Church is a global project that sees children attending their local churches for days jam-packed with activities.

Seen in churches all over the world, Messy Church is fun, while teaching positive values about Christianity. focussing on creativity, hospitality and celebration.

Many churches around the area participate in the scheme, including St Mary's, in Wotton-under-Edge, and North Nibley Chapel,

At St James' Church the Messy Church events are held at 10am on Saturday mornings about every two months.

Keep your eye on the church for future events like this by visiting dursleyparishchurch.org.uk/calendar.

Learn more about Messy Church and how to get involved with the project yourself by visiting www.messychurch.org.uk.