STAFF and students from Blackburn College are gearing up for this weekend’s National Festival of Making with a busy programme of activities designed to help celebrate Blackburn College’s 130-year anniversary.

Spread across various locations throughout the town, the college will be hosting a bundle of activities for members of the public to get involved with.

Visitors can take a walk back through time on King William Street in the official college tent with photographs and displays of the Prince and Princess of Wales laying the college’s foundation stone in 1888.

They can taste the delicious menu of Blackburn Central High School pupils Nabil Hamza and Waseem Iqbal, winners of the Reg Johnson Young Chef Schools Competition, which was hosted by the college and judged by celebrity chefs Nigel Haworth and Paul Heathcote.

The winning menu of Goosnargh chicken with herb tortellini, asparagus tips and garden peas followed by rhubarb crumble with rose scented ice cream will be available for sale at Cafe Northcote throughout the weekend.

Visitors can also explore the fascinating photography of The Talbot Archive at Blackburn Cathedral, showcasing Lancashire’s industrial, social and architectural heritage through the lens of photographers Wally and Howard Talbot.

Students and staff from BA (Hons) Photography will give two talks on Saturday.

You can engage with science, technology, engineering, arts and maths subjects in the STEAM tent on Ainsworth Street Car Park, where you can make copper crafts with students and staff from the construction department.

Students from Blackburn College’s supported internship Get Set programme have also been involved with the Teenage Market, creating a range of merchandise designed by fashion designer Henry Holland.

There will also be a pop-up Textile, Fashion and Interiors Exhibition within the Makers Market at King George’s Hall