The Clitheroe Line – A Picturesque Journey is a joint project between Arts2Heal,a Blackburn-based charity which works with vulnerable adults, and Community Rail Lancashire.
Clitheroe Castle Keep – photo © Simon Clarke
Ats2Heal work with vulnerable adults who work through art to improve mental health and combat social isolation through undertaking art-based projects. A group of 20 members visited the Clitheroe Line’s10 stations between Clitheroe and Bolton, explored the area and photographed the features unique to each of the station locations.
These images will be displayed across Lancashire to promote places of interest that can be reached from the Clitheroe Line including Pendle Hill, Whalley Abbey, Blackburn Cathedral, Entwistle’s reservoirs, Bolton Museum and the many other notable railway and industrial features.
Ramsgreave & Wilpshire station waiting shelter – photo © Simon Clarke
Through this work the participants have grown in confidence to travel by train and to take small groups out by train as well. They have learned a lot about photography and also how to write poetry that captures their insights into the area.
Whalley Viaduct – photo © Simon Clarke
The photographs will be part of a mobile exhibition, with the inaugural display taking place in Blackburn Market Place in March 2025. The exhibition will then be available to other venues where there is interest. The photographs will also be displayed in an online photography gallery hosted by CRL. Plans to collaborate with the South East Lancashire CRP’s complimentary project are ongoing.