A NEW campaign to make Blackburn with Darwen an official ‘Cathedral City’ has been launched.

Key business and political figures in the borough believe planning a new bid for the Royal-awarded civic status must start now.

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They hope the completion of the £34million Cathedral Quarter and £8.5m clergy court complete with cloister garden at Lancashire’s premier Anglican Church will make it third time lucky after failed applications in 2000 and 2002.

The scheme is the brainchild of Canon Andrew Hindley, who has spent 20  years helping mastermind the regeneration of Blackburn town centre and believes work must start now on a new bid.

He has been backed by borough regeneration boss, Cllr Phil Riley, former council leaders Sir Bill Taylor and Colin Rigby and businessman Mo Isap, chairman of the Blackburn with Darwen Local Strategic Partnership (LSP), which is rebranding the two towns for the 21st Century.

City status is awarded by the Monarch after competitions to mark significant Royal occasions and Blackburn with Darwen missed out at The Millennium and Queen’s Golden Jubilee in 2002 but did not apply at the 2012 Diamond Jubilee.

Blackburn is just one for four towns with Diocesan Anglican Cathedrals not part of official cities, along with Bury St Edmunds, Rochester, and Guildford.

Canon Hindley said: “I have spent 20 years working in partnership with the borough council and local businesses on the Cathedral Quarter development.

“It has been my life’s work.

“My dream is for the borough of Blackburn with Darwen to finally become an official ‘Cathedral City’.

“We have a beautiful Cathedral with more than 1,000 years of Christian history.

“It now has the first new suite of domestic clergy accommodation and Cloister Garden at an English Cathedral for 500 years as the centre of major new £34million redevelopment development in Blackburn town centre.

“People come out of the railway station and say it feels like being a in a city and I believe now is the time to start planning to become one.

“We need to start working in partnership with the council, business and wider community on an a bid so it is ready for the next suitable competition for the status.

“The two towns of Blackburn with Darwen have an proud industrial history and huge recent investment in regeneration.

“The borough deserves ‘Cathedral City’ status and it would be wonderful if it was to get this Royal seal of approval for all the effort hat has gone in to it revitalisation for the 21st Century.”

Mr Isap, spearheading the business-led drive to reinvent Blackburn’s motto of ‘by skill and hard work’ for the modern age, said: “In principle we support this.

“The LSP is in favour of anything which raises the status, reputation and recognition of Blackburn with Darwen and attracts investment to the two towns.

“City status would do just that and could bring new powers and government money to the borough under ministers’ plans for the ‘Northern Powerhouse’.

“It would be wonderful to see Blackburn with Darwen given the Royal ‘Cathedral City’ seal of approval at some point in the future.”

Cllr Riley said: “We have great plans for the future of Blackburn with Darwen and this is the sort of status to which we aspire as the borough gets a ‘city feel’.

“We have to continue to work on our plans for the future of the borough and consider this when it is appropriate to do so.”

Sir Bill Taylor said: “Blackburn with Darwen deserves to gain city status.

“We all need to start working together to prepare a successful bid so the application is ready for the next appropriate opportunity.”

Cllr Rigby, currently deputy leader of the council Conservative group and Mayor elect for 2017/2018, said: “I would support a new bid for city status going forward in the light of the developments that have taken place with the support of the Cathedral, all political parties and the business community.

“Any bid and city status would need to reflect the contribution Darwen makes to the borough.”

BID manager Harriet Roberts said: “Blackburn deserves to win an award for earning its place in the Northern Power House with aspiring partnerships in a town centre that’s continuing to go places.”

In March 2002 Blackburn lost out to Preston Stirling, Newport, and Lisburn and Newry in the Queen’s Golden Jubilee competition.

In the 2000 contest to become Millennium City the winners were Brighton and Hove, Inverness and Wolverhampton.

In 2012 the Diamond Jubilee cities were Chelmsford, Perth and St Asaph.

Buckingham Palace, Ten Downing Street and the Cabinet Office declined to comment.