SOME of Bradford’s most historic buildings will be opening their doors to the public next month as part of a nationwide heritage event.

The four day event, which runs from Thursday, September 8 to Sunday, September 11, will allow the people of Bradford to get a rare chance to look inside some of the district’s most significant buildings.

Many of the venues are not normally open to the public, so Heritage Open Days is a great opportunity to take in some of the city’s rich history.

One building which will be opening its doors is Cottingley Town Hall, Bingley, which will be celebrating life in the village during the First World War.

Hilary Charnock is a trustee of the town hall, and is part of the team responsible for organising the event, which will take place on Saturday, September 10. Mrs Charnock said: “The local history society has been doing a lot of research into people from the village who went to serve in the war and what happened when they got back. They have also been looking into what women in the village did to help the war effort and the role the town hall played. We have pulled together a community choir of all ages who will be performing on the day, singing songs from the time period.”

Another building that will be open for the weekend will be St Cuthbert’s Church in Wilmer Road, Heaton. The Grade II listed Catholic church features a statue of Mary as a mill girl, a statue of St Joseph and a stone relief of St Anthony.

Featuring designs by sculptor Eric Gill, there will be talks about his work and the history of the church, on September 11.

Sneaky Peeks tours at City Hall in the city centre will come to an end with a heritage open day on September 10.

Visitors will be able to explore the historic building and have a rare look around the Lord Mayor’s office, the chambers used by Bradford Council and in the old Victorian courtroom, which has been featured on Coronation Street.

There will also be a range of items on display which are not usually on show to the public.

Bingley Bellringers will be giving demonstrations during the weekend and teaching people about the history of the bells which date back to the 17th century at Bingley All Saints Church in Old Main Street.

Lower Wyke Movarian Church will be open for visitors to look at its unique architecture.

A heritage walk takes place to mark Low Moor Explosion, 100 years on from the disaster, at Victoria Park in Oakenshaw, on Sunday 11.

The Peace Museum in Piece Hall Yard, Bradford will be open on the Thursday and Friday. In Keighley, the Shared Church will be holding displays on Saturday 10, Keighley and Worth Valley Railway will be holding events, Cliffe Castle Museum will be holding Alice in Wonderland tours, and St Mary’s church in Oxenhope will be holding visits to the bell tower. In Ilkley, the High Royd Memorial Chapel and Garden will open for visitors during the weekend, and a walk will take place around Myddelton Grange in Langbar Road on the Saturday. More details at heritageopendays.org.uk/visiting.