Since the last Ice Age the River Ribble – a 121km waterway – has been home to Pre-historic peoples, Romans, Anglo-Saxons, Normans and been a major Viking super highway linking a Scandinavian kingdom that stretched from Dublin in the west to York in the east. It is both a boundary and connector for communities and is home to a wealth of birds, mammals, invertebrates and fish, including bats, otters, the rare white-clawed crayfish and the iconic Atlantic Salmon.  It has provided energy to turn millwheels, helped transform Preston into a textile producing giant and connected Lancashire to the rest of the world.

We want to create a fun and fascinating arts and heritage project, River Ribble Heritage Expo – a liquid history (RRHE), a transformative 5-year programme. RRHE will create an immersive, experiential and diverse journey through the Ribble’s natural, cultural, historic and social heritage, highlighting its international significance.

It will also ask an important question for the 21st Century – how to connect diverse communities who do not currently link their lives with their local heritage, and bring about positive change?

The project will reveal, celebrate and surprise, connecting our diverse 21st Century audiences with their natural heritage. Artists and communities will co-create site-responsive, iconic, stimulating works that will be of regional and national significance, bringing our important river heritage to life - outdoors, immersed in nature and COVID-safe.

Inclusive education, events and volunteering opportunities will inspire, upskill, and engage audiences who do not normally engage with their natural heritage, improving life opportunities.  One  of  our key ideas is to engage with
as many people as possible. We hope our programme will create a vibrant communication between the past and the present, spark interest in local heritage and help create a positive legacy.

If you could spare a few seconds to answer the following questions it will be really appreciated.