Why Padiham has attracted globally famous artists to record their latest albums / Rachel Bayley Burnley Place Brand Manager (Economy and Growth) column

However, I am absolutely on a mission to get back in this paper’s good books. Firstly, the Burnley Place Brand team has a new member, which means we have an extra pair of hands to positively promote the borough both locally and nationally – great news!

Secondly, the manic few months of publishing InBusiness Burnley, organising the Burnley Business Awards and more recently, getting the hot-off-the-press Burnley Lifestyle Magazine out means I now have a few moments to breathe – and write this column!

If you haven’t yet picked up a copy of Burnley Lifestyle Magazine, make sure you grab one from Towneley and Gawthorpe Halls, whilst you can also pop into reception at Burnley Town Hall to get your hands on one. We send 17,000 copies across the country to show off our beautiful countryside, fantastic leisure, hospitality and retail businesses and some of the talented people making waves.

The latest issue is something of a Padiham special. We get out and about to some of the many amazing beauty and hair businesses in the town and find out why it’s such a hotspot for this type of business.

One such business is The Looking Glass, where we met Kellie and Melissa, who have recently relocated to Padiham. They told us that Padiham’s heritage, high street development, community spirit and free parking are just some of the reasons why they came to the borough.

If you’ve not visited Padiham recently, it’s undergone an incredible transformation over the past few years, which is impressive considering that the past two years alone have seen the majority of this hard work take place. The road has been made safer for pedestrians and new public realm space has been built, making it a much more pleasant meander up and down the hill to grab coffee and lunch or to pop into one of the many thriving businesses here.

Room + Power at Padiham Town Hall has fast become a co-working hub after being newly launched. The racing green walls, leather sofas and parquet floorings make it feel a luxurious space from which to be based and I highly recommend you book a tour if you’re self-employed and looking for some conversation with fellow business owners and a nice place to bring clients.

Padiham Building Society has also undergone a huge transformation, led by Liam Veitch, who has digital content agency Tone on the ground floor and flexible working space upstairs for small businesses.

He laughed as he told me that many a time, he would be stood in the queue at Bertwistles and hear someone say the former bank was definitely going to be a Wetherspoons…but little did they know!

Grab a copy of the magazine to see the transformation photos, as well as hear from one happy tenant who welcomes globally famous artists through the doors of the former building society building to record their albums.

Musical director Joe Clegg is based in Padiham and when you read his interview, you’ll be amazed at who has graced the town centre these past few months.