17 spellbinding photographs from Harry Potter event at The Barlow, Edgworth

1 Aug, 2016

A MAGICAL day was had by all at a Harry Potter-themed event at The Barlow.

The spellbinding event, in Edgworth, invited fans to dress up as their favourite characters from the best-selling book and film series.

Witches and wizards, old and young, joined in the family fun day on Harry Potter’s birthday — July 31 — in order to raise money for Derian House Children’s Hospice.

A number of themed activities and workshops such as tie colouring in, potion making and a Harry Potter meet and greet were held, with hundreds of people joining the magic.

There was also a meet and greet with Harry Potter characters in the library, performed by actors.

The event was organised by Anita McKay, in conjunction with The Barlow, in Bolton Road.

Stuart Miller, The Barlow centre manager, said: “The day was specifically planned for the day because it was Harry Potter’s birthday.

“We are hoping to make it an annual event on this date every year.

“It was a great opportunity to raise money the Derian House and we worked with Anita to put the event on and opened up the coffee shop and library for the meet and greet.

“The footfall for the event was really good and 1000 free tickets were booked.

“We had a lot of Harry Potter themed stalls and activities for children and everyone really like it and came dressed up in their Hogwarts outfits.

“People really took it in good spirits and were all full of smiles.

“It was a really good day.”

FRIENDS OF THE BARLOW

Blackburn with Darwen Council handed over the running and upkeep of The Barlow to the community in 2013. Since then The Barlow Charity has relied upon the generosity of benefactors and income from users of the facilities, plus the efforts of volunteers to sustain this much valued community facility. Significant improvements have been carried out to help ensure a long-term future, including a new roof, replacement windows, new hygienic worktops in the coffee shop kitchen and a new hot water & heating system. Most recently (summer 2022) the renovation of the outdoor veranda has been completed and a new adjacent decking area has been installed. In addition the snooker room has been restored to its former splendour by a small group of volunteers.

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An important source of funding that has contributed to the above mentioned improvements is The Friends of the Barlow scheme.  By becoming a Friend you can contribute to a fund that is used for repairs and renovations to the structural fabric of the building and pathways etc, and to upgrade, refresh and improve facilities e.g. now that the building is once again weathertight there are plans being drawn up for the main hall can be deep-cleaned, re-decorated and refurbished and other water-damaged areas such as the main stairway & its beautiful large, stained glass window to also be restored to their former glory.

As a Friend of The Barlow, your regular donations provide a much appreciated, steady income stream that to date (summer 2022) has raised in the region of over £40,000, which has been mostly used contributing towards paying for the roof, windows and heating system.
We intend to soon publish the overall list of improvements/tasks and from that you will see that there is a significant amount of expenditure still needed to achieve all of the identified tasks and improvements. We would welcome donations/sponsorship for specific items that may be of particular interest to individuals or families or groups, but the regular donations by Friends of The Barlow are also crucial. Therefore, we welcome any and all new donors and are grateful for whatever amount you choose to donate.

We are of course also very grateful to all of our existing Friends of The Barlow and if you are able to increase your monthly donation by any amount, that would be hugely appreciated – you can either make the increase to your standing order directly with your bank or you can complete a new form and send it to your bank or give it to us to process.

Please also consider increasing the value of your donation at no extra cost to you by using Gift Aid – as an example, an £8 donation from you becomes £10 with the Gift Aid add-on!

If you wish to donate please click on the link below, complete the form and either send it to your bank with an email copy to our email address fotb@thebarlow.co.uk  or return the completed form to the Barlow’s office in a sealed envelope addressed to Friends of The Barlow.  Paper copies of the form are available from The Barlow.

For any further information please email fotb@thebarlow.co.uk or contact the office via info@thebarlow.co.uk or 01204 852216.

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