One of the largest ever online databases of Christian material has gone live on the web today.

Twelvebaskets is offering more than 30,000 different images, Christian songs, hymns, poems, books, Bible studies, articles, plays and material for children.

All of the materials are available legally for non-commercial use and are linked to the church Lectionary, meaning that churches and schools can download multiple resources and construct entire services or assemblies.

Any Christian writers, photographers and musicians who upload their own original material to the site will also receive a royalty every time their work is downloaded.

They will also have the option of donating some or all royalties to a designated charity if preferred.

The website is the brainchild of Methodist minister Wayne Grewcock and is part funded by the Methodist Church and the Fred Pratt Green Trust.

He said: “We are delighted to unveil today what we believe to be the largest, the broadest and the most user-friendly set of resources ever made available to the worldwide church.

“It is the ideal portal for busy church leaders and school teachers looking for top quality content for their services and assemblies.

"More than that, if the site takes off as we anticipate, we expect that Twelvebaskets will become a unique Christian community, where people from every tradition, denomination and style of worship will come together to share their resources, to broaden their experience and to grow together in expressing their love for and worship of Jesus Christ.”

Twelvebaskets costs £60 (equivalent to £5 a month) for an individual and £100 for a church (with access for 5 people).

To find out more, visit www.twelvebaskets.co.uk