A NEW exhibition of drawings which records a child's experiences of growing up in Accrington has opened at the Haworth Art Gallery.

The artist behind the show is Richard Foster, 35, a former resident of the town who now lives in Leiden, Holland.

Mr Foster has teamed up with his friend, Chris Dawson, for the project, called "Doing it for the Kids".

It features drawings that are to be put together for a cartoon book about life in his home town and the changes that have taken place in the last 30 years.

Mr Foster, who runs an internet magazine in Holland, grew up in Whalley Road in Accrington.

He said: "I was talking to Chris about how things have changed and we had the idea for the book.

"The idea to put it in cartoon form was to help make it funny and it deals with all different aspects of life in the town."

Mr Dawson, 32, also grew up in Accrington and contributed the words to the project.

Mr Foster, a self-taught artist, left the area five years ago and now lives with his girlfriend in Leiden.

He added: "The book has taken more than two years so far to put it into cartoon form.

"We have tried to mirror what is going on in people's lives in the town and their reactions to the changes that are taking place here."

He said that he hopes to finish the book in the New Year and will initially publish it himself before looking for a major publisher to take it on.

The exhibition, which features the cartoon strips blown up to A3 size, runs at the gallery, in Manchester Road, Accrington, until January 29.