News Centre

VISITORS to Chorley’s Flat Iron car park will notice some changes from today (Monday 10 April) as preparation ground work begins for the extension to Market Walk shopping centre. Although work on building the extension to Market Walk will not start until later in the year, Chorley Council has commissioned contractors, Eric Wright, to reconfigure […]

Fans of history and nostalgia will be thrilled to know that there is only a couple of weeks until Leighton Hall opens its door to the public for the summer season. Opening on Bank holiday Monday (1st May), Leighton Hall is the lived-in home of the Gillow furniture making family, with all the rooms regularly […]

Brockholes, Lancashire’s youngest nature reserve will feature on Countryfile on Easter Sunday. And viewers nationwide will get a treat as the reserve puts on a brilliant show for the cameras. It will be the first time Brockholes has featured on the nation’s favourite countryside show since it opened at Easter 2011. Events and Communications Manager […]

VisitBlackpool today announced that MTV, the world’s biggest youth entertainment and music brand, is set to deliver the 2017 Blackpool Illuminations Switch-On event for the second year running, as part of an ongoing partnership. The event, which will take place on the evening of Friday 1st September, will build on the huge success of last […]

VisitEngland has today (10 April 2017) announced that the AA has been awarded a contract to run the VisitEngland Quality Assessment Schemes under licence for the next three years. VisitEngland Chief Executive Sally Balcombe said: “I am delighted to announce this contract which guarantees the standards and expectations our scheme participants have come to expect […]

Businesses across Blackburn and Darwen are celebrating after being named finalists in the third annual Hive Blackburn and Darwen Business Awards. Successful businesses have had their written entries validated and scored against strict criteria to be named one of four finalists in each category. Finalists will now face an interview and presentation stage with judges […]

On Thursday 6th July 1972, 3,543 people attended the launch of Blackpool Zoo and now, almost 45 years later, the attraction is preparing to celebrate its 15th millionth visitor! At some point during the second or third week of April that person will walk through the doors to a fanfare of prizes, including a zoo […]

Today (April 6th) is the centenary of celebrated surrealist artist Leonora Carrington (1917-2011), and Edge Hill University is marking the occasion in several ways.   Professor Roger Shannon, an Edge Hill academic with a research interest in the surrealist painter – who resided in Mexico but grew up in Lancashire – will speak at a […]

Edge Hill University has today (6 April) been shortlisted for two prestigious national awards. The University has been named as a contender for ‘Workplace of the Year’ and in the ‘Outstanding Administrative Services Team’ category by Times Higher Education. The illustrious awards, known as the Thelmas, recognise leadership and management across the UK’s higher education […]

VisitBlackpool are gearing up for another busy season and the resort will once again host an outstanding programme of award-winning events. With Armed Forces Week, the two-day Blackpool Air Show, Ride the Lights, Illuminations Switch-On, four weeks of World Fireworks Championships and the world-renowned Blackpool Illuminations, the events calendar is looking pretty packed. And it’s […]

The Great British Food Festival has announced popular dining discount card, tastecard, as the festivals headline sponsor for 2017.   Food Festival Director, Daniel Maycock said, ‘We are so pleased to have tastecard on board for our 2017 events! The brand is a great fit for us, being synonymous with good food and dining out […]

BIRDS. Bikes. Choirs. Carnivals. Drumming. Dancing workshops.  And that’s just for starters. The full arts and music programme for the blooming Cloudspotting Music and Arts Festival has been confirmed, apart from a few late surprises, and a rich programme of magical activities and adventures lies in wait for North West families. Taking place between July […]