Burnley Storybook
a special place we want to share
This is our Burnley. A story of how one of the most important places in the world during the late 19th century is now carving out a new role for itself amidst the beautiful Pennine landscape of Lancashire.
We’re proud of our story, proud of our town and excited about our future. We want as many people as possible to know what’s special, attractive and interesting about Burnley. We want others to see how our illustrious past is helping shape the Burnley of tomorrow.
There is no boundary to our ambition for Burnley but we’re realistic and know we have to raise our game, work together and do things differently. We’ve already made significant changes to the Burnley experience, so more people consider us as their place to live, visit or work.
This is our story, this is our Burnley.
our opportunity
In so many ways this is a time of opportunity for the town. Millions of pounds are being spent on new housing; our schools have been rebuilt with the most modern facilities; we can now boast the University of Central Lancashire campus which opened in 2009 and the University College of Football Business which is based at Wembley and Burnley’s Turf Moor ground offering unique degrees in different aspects of the football industry; the first University Technical College in Lancashire which opened in 2013 supporting advanced manufacturing and engineering with vocational courses for 14-19 year olds; new developments are transforming the town and bringing new business opportunities on its edge and perhaps most importantly a new rail line has connected us to Manchester. Initiatives such as the fantastic canal marina, the Woodland Spa and stunning sculpture ‘The Singing Ringing Tree’ show how much our extensive countryside matters to and is part of us.
Of course, like many places we have challenges but it’s easy to forget what we have going for us:
Burnley is very green with a number of outstanding parks in the town, and being located in the heart of Pennine Lancashire it’s surrounded by stunning countryside. This natural environment helped determine our role in the world, but today it gives us the pleasure of the moors, villages, Pendle Hill, the river and canal, plenty of space to play in and fresh air to breathe.
Whilst we take these things for granted, for most people they are a total surprise. They don’t know what we offer, don’t know where we are, don’t know about our beautiful location. So, we’re going to tell them how special we are, whilst creating an experience they can’t get anywhere else.
The key to that is our new Burnley story and all of us who will bring it to life.
making Burnley the hero
To make Burnley successful we have to bring in new jobs, keep the ones we have, attract visitors to the area, encourage people to come and live in the town (even if they work elsewhere), and get investors and developers to see us as a place worth investing in. Achieving these things means other people making choices about Burnley and we have to help them do that by getting across why we are special, how we are changing and our plans for the future. We need to get on their ‘short list’ of places to consider.
Not surprisingly other places are doing the same, so we have to work harder and smarter to be successful and our new story will make it simpler to get our message across and improve the Burnley experience.
It’s important to remember that a person considering a place for any reason usually has a few options in mind. Before they add a town, city or area to their list they need to have a good feeling of what the place is all about, what sort of experience they may have there and what’s different to do and see. Because it’s people who are making these choices the decision is as much about emotion as facts, does it feel right?
Our story will help make Burnley the ‘hero’ by uncovering, discovering and characterising what makes the place special and different. We’ve already highlighted quite a few things that do that, and we’ll use this fresh way of thinking to do much more. The story will: enhance how we communicate Burnley through our words and images; how we develop the service we provide in hotels, taxis and the Council for example; how we improve the environment with things such as signage, landscaping, seats, and lighting, and through the design of what we build and develop.
So, over time this story and how we bring it to life will come to shape everyone’s emotional and practical experience of Burnley.
It will give us a clear direction for how the town should change and grow, and why people should put it on their list of places to be.
an ambition for Burnley we all can share
As we look to the future of Burnley we need an aspirational, memorable and motivational vision for us to aim for as we develop the place. This will set quality standards, focus our efforts and challenge us all to play our part in creating a thriving and attractive town.
We are all going to aim to: create a new Burnley experience that local people are proud of and others aspire to be part of
We have some great people and great businesses in Burnley and some really special things in the area, but not only do we need to shout about these, we also have to provide a great experience to complement them. We need better connections with the important places around us. We need: fantastic places for all the family to eat and drink; knowledgeable, personal service in hotels and taxis to help our visitors; better signage to help people get around, and information at our key places of interest to show what the whole place offers. We need to link different experiences together and offer high quality events and activities that bring people into the area and town centre for a good time. These are the things that bring a place to life and leave an impression on everyone that comes in contact with it.
Whilst our journey to create the new Burnley experience will take time, we have an opportunity to build on the many projects already underway or planned for the area as well as doing new things that make a difference. However, we must have a sense of urgency, take some sensible risks and show leadership if we are going to make the changes needed so we are seriously considered by the people we need to influence and attract.
why Burnley is special and different?
We’ve taken a long hard look at the town, its businesses, its countryside and what is special about Burnley because we have to be absolutely clear what the Burnley of tomorrow needs to be about. We know why we are special and how we are different.
This new, place led approach captures the essence of the place and is at the heart of how we are going to get Burnley chosen and provide a great experience.
The words that represent this new thinking will determine how we develop our proposition through the way we communicate, the things we build, the environment we create and the way we behave. Whilst some describe what we have and the way we are, they also reflect what we want and need to be, so some of this approach is aspirational, but realistic.
Sitting at the centre of this new thinking is the notion of Burnley being:
naturally connected
For Burnley to prosper it needs to ensure there is a strong emotional connection between the place and the people who live or work there and those it wants to attract. This is partly why we have focussed on creating a distinct experience for the town and area that people can relate to.
This phrase also expresses the importance of the link between the urban town centre and the rural hinterland, both need each other. In the past this was important for industry as seen with coal and cotton and now it reflects a tremendous quality of life and a great area to visit. Yet now those historic qualities of work ethic, innovation and self belief are at the heart of a new Burnley.
Whilst Burnley is physically well connected to Preston and the M6 motorway in the west it needs to improve its physical and economic links with Manchester and Leeds. The new Burnley to Manchester rail service will mean you can be in the centre of Manchester in well under an hour. It is entirely sensible to encourage those who work in Manchester to live in the Burnley area, quality of life and value for money are just two compelling reasons.
So, as a place it wants to reach out to those who could come to live, study, set up a business, visit or work – it really is a place that welcomes all.
From parks to villages, historic buildings to places to eat, the Burnley area has lots to see and do but finding these things and making the links between them isn’t easy. We know we need to do a much better job of making the place easier to explore and enjoy. Burnley is proud of its diversity and is a place of many communities; some within different parts of the town, others being outlying villages. They all create the rich tapestry of a connected town and country. Equally, the many organisations that work for the place and its communities must be as one in creating the new Burnley, one vision, one message; a shared ownership of the future.
This compelling notion of being naturally connected is supported by three important elements that make us different and will help drive the transformation of the Burnley experience. Again, these aren’t marketing messages but thinking that defines what we aim to focus on and how we intend to work towards our vision.
Natural
is an association for those that don’t know the place, which is wholly surprising. Having played such an important part in the industrial revolution Burnley perhaps conjures up grey not green. Yet this is a place with parks, a river, a canal and two beautiful stately properties all very much within the town.
As one ventures a short distance from Burnley centre you can stand on the top of Pendle Hill contemplating the story of the witches; marvel at the The Singing Ringing Tree sculpture, spend time at the canal marina, visit the delightful villages and their pubs that scatter the area or get some exercise on the cycleway.
It’s natural to be surprised by Burnley.
Connected
represents both what Burnley is and strives to be. This is a town that is comfortable with being Northern and Lancastrian, which provides its genuineness, friendliness and a lack of airs and graces. It probably explains why the town and its football club are as one; both with an important history rooted in a working community, both having been pre-eminent and now rediscovering their status and belief.
Burnley’s role in the world stemmed from its location and its ability to exploit the natural assets that surrounded it. It was also Burnley’s ability to connect outwards with the rest of the world that made it the great place it was, a world leader in the production of cotton cloth. This innovation continues to shape the Burnley of today which is a centre of advanced engineering and aerospace expertise with a global reach. Skills, knowledge and innovation that once built weaving looms now build airplanes, cars and electronic equipment. The town has built upon its roots in textiles with businesses supplying velvet to the queen, upholstery cloth to London boutiques, and specialist fabrics to keep our soldiers safe. New businesses are investing and older ones are adapting and changing making new connections in a new world. Millions are being invested in new business parks, transport infrastructure and superfast broadband.
All this investment in education, business and people is bearing fruit and has been highlighted by the town being awarded ‘The Most Enterprising Area’ for 2013 by the Department for Business, Innovation and Skills. This recognition of a pioneering culture and transformed economic prospects is testament to Burnley ‘doing things differently’ and changing their own fortunes. For Burnley, past connections represent future opportunities.
Animated
Burnley comes to life on match days with passion, pride and excitement. The energising spirit, togetherness and humour that come from supporting the football team epitomise everything that is resilient and engaging about the Burnley community.
Things are changing, new businesses are investing and established businesses are growing as Burnley is beginning to restore its sense of confidence, re-discover its self belief and reassert its role in the wider economy.
This new story needs to help the place believe again, find its colour, promote leadership, encourage risk taking and regain that ‘can do attitude’.
Certainly, our new schools, colleges and universities are leading the way by bringing the latest thinking and quality of building design, creating places and experiences that excite and inspire young people to learn. The students themselves are transforming the town making it a younger, vibrant, buzzing place.
These fantastic new facilities are not just places for learning, they bring people together, act as a catalyst for ideas and fresh thinking and provide a new energy in the town.
It’s time to capture the spirit of Burnley.
Our new identity is the visual representation and embodiment of ‘new Burnley’ – ultimately it reflects ‘naturally connected’ which lies at the heart of our thinking. Its design shows the connections the place makes between its urban core (reds and oranges) and its rural surroundings (greens and browns) both which are so important for Burnley. The identity shows an interconnected and rich diversity of place – different communities, ethnicity, villages, estates and individuals coming together as one. Burnley only becomes whole with all these elements working, living and playing in a rich and colourful tapestry of life.
This is a Burnley rooted in the warp and weft of its cotton past, shaped in a landscape not that much different today and no less important. Yesterday it was home to and drove the industrial economy, today it powers wind farms and provides wonderful opportunities for the new leisure economy – great quality of life in a liveable landscape.
Critically, the identity highlights the colour, drive, freshness and modernity of a place looking to its future as it creates stronger links with its neighbours in Manchester, Leeds and Preston; embraces the connectivity of the digital highway; invites new people to create their connections in the area as they come to live in the community and looks to extend a welcome to people finding Burnley for the first time.
This is a confident Burnley. This is a Burnley that can have fun and is full of many different characters. This is a Burnley proud of its Pennine Lancashire roots as they help shape its future. This is a Burnley that is resolutely looking forward. This is a Burnley where everyone can play their part. This is a Burnley that is full of life and living it.
So, that’s the new Burnley. Aspiring to be the best. Proud of where we have come from and even more excited about where we’re going. Confident in ourselves. Stronger together. Looking outwards. All places have their time and this is ours.
This is Burnley, where we dare to dream.