Blackburn may be unrecognisable by the end of the year as exciting projects await for the people, places and communities that make it thrive
Blackburn may not be a city, but it certainly thinks like one.
Big things are ahead in 2023, with a £250 million regeneration masterplan – the biggest of its kind in the north west – surrounding the former Thwaites Brewery site and welcoming a £60 million skills campus, Cultural Quarter, a relocated Morrisons and a repurposed St John’s Church.
The plan is that the old Morrisons will make way for some modern, energy-efficient town centre living: its former car park will turn into a council one and with the help of a Levelling Up Funding bid, the two large car parks in the town centre will be made into a cutting-edge skills campus for two of the leading providers of skills training in the area (yet to be announced at the time of print).
There's a sense of excitement here, of momentum. Things are improving. Blackburn College has won approval for a multi-million-pound upgrade to its Grade II-listed Victoria Building and the £3m Blakey Moor Townscape Heritage Project, to be known as the Blackburn Cultural Quarter, is beginning its takeover of the town centre’s Northgate Conservation Area, restoring properties on Northgate and Lord Street West with trendy new bars and restaurants, new shop fronts and a better public space surrounding King George’s Hall.
‘It is a consequence of us, over the last seven or eight years, being conscious of growth, of change and about realising what we need to do,’ Blackburn with Darwen Borough Council’s executive member for growth and development councillor Phil Riley says.
‘We have got one of the youngest populations in the country – a lot of them well educated – and we want a town where those people can grow up here and stay here.
‘We want to send a signal that you don’t have to go to Liverpool or Manchester or London to make a go of a business, but that actually, you can do that here.’
Although the town last year failed in its city bid, what it did was pull together a sense of civic pride.
And it has done wonders for the Cathedral, making it a part of the fabric of the town in a way that oddly, it wasn't before. ‘The Cathedral is a real asset to the borough and the Dean and his colleagues are conscious that they have a community asset there,’ Cllr Riley continues, adding they are looking at producing a programme of events. 'That is a really important visual impact of what is changing here.’
The Council has been awarded £2m by The Arts Council for four of its national portfolio organisations, too, with Blackburn Museum and Art Gallery (set to celebrate its 150th birthday in 2024), the National Festival of Making, British Textile Biennial and Culturapedia each receiving an allocation from the three-year programme.
And St John's Church will be repurposed into a shared office space for flexible and collaborative working, following the devastation from a fire in 2019.
‘That was really part of what came out of the city bid, that there is a real understanding and a real support for the idea that the town wants to grow,’ Cllr Riley says.
‘What we recognise is that change is holistic. We want a place that people can be proud of and where there is a sense of community.
‘That has been our driver over the last few years, this mantra of if somebody comes to us with an idea, why wouldn’t we do it?
‘These are challenging times and clearly, we need Government support, but we feel we have a very compelling story.’
DELILAH CHLOE
It’s a year of new adventures for home fragrance brand Delilah Chloe, who are saying goodbye to their shop on Bolton Road and hello to new products, new connections and new countries.
It’s a move that makes sense to owners Carl and Kirsty Elmer – who named their award-winning business after their daughter – to pull their business back to basics with an online-only store to replicate its beginnings nearly three years ago.
The time spent away from the shop will allow them to be more proactive in securing deals in local department stores and overseas; give them the time to create new products and launch a new, luxury home fragrance range specifically for hotels.
'We have loved serving our customers in-store but we feel that coming out from behind the counter will allow us to grow Delilah Chloe into the vision we have,’ says Kirsty, winner of HIVE’s Micro Business of the Year award 2022.
‘We want to grow our stockist base, our export market and continue chasing those opportunities we may have missed this year. We have got a lot of plans.’
Delilah Chloe’s products include candles, wax melts, reed diffusers, wash lotions and carpet fresheners, and product development is a big thing for the couple this year.
‘There is a lot of maths and science involved in the making of our products so it is nice to be so hands on,’ Kirsty adds.
‘People have been asking if we do our scents just as oils for electric diffusers, so we are working on that. It will be really big for us because there is a lot of demand for it and people are excited for it.’
delilahchloe.com
I LOVE BLACKBURN
BBC Radio Manchester presenter Anna Jameson shares her memories of growing up in the town
Whenever anyone asks where I’m from, I proudly respond: ‘Blackburn’, with a cheeky grin.
My Dad and his siblings grew up at Highercroft, where my Nan lived for most of her life. My Mum moved to Preston New Road when she was 23, for her first teaching job at Billinge High School.
My childhood was centred around the town. We grew up in a semi-detached house near The Bulls Head in Brownhill and I went to primary school at St Mary’s, Langho.
I’m a massive Blackburn Rovers fan and will never forget how the town exploded in 1995 when they won the premier league.
I remember an overwhelming sense of euphoria with cars beeping, people cheering and blue and white flags rippling in the sunshine. At seven years old, I didn’t realise the true extent of what that moment meant for Blackburn but I am so glad I witnessed it. Maybe one day we’ll return to our heady heights…!
Most Saturdays were spent in the town centre, shopping with my parents in the precinct after my dance classes. If I was good, I’d be treated to a chicken and stuffing sandwich at the Refreshment Bar.
I went to secondary school at St Augustine’s and then travelled in the opposite direction on the 225 bus to St Mary’s College. I can remember feeling so happy there. It’s where I really discovered my love of media and built the foundations for my career.
My first job was at The Exchange Coffee Company where I discovered my love of a good brew. I remember earning around £25 for a Saturday shift, and then blowing it all on a night out.
My mates and I would dance on the platform in Barlife to noughties dance classics before making the trek across the car park to Heaven and Hell and, in later years, to Liquid where we’d be handed complimentary toast on our way out.
The Revidge Run pub crawl on Christmas Eve was an annual highlight. My greatest wish for Blackburn would be to see its nightlife reignited.
After moving away, I found myself back in my hometown when I landed one of my first journalism jobs at BBC Radio Lancashire on Darwen Street. Today you’ll see me every so often, sipping wine at my Dad’s local, The Rising Sun.
The best thing about Blackburn is its people. My mate once said, “people in Blackburn are all cut from the same cloth”. We are. We’re all ace.
