A DAD-of-two got the surprise of his life when his partner of 12 years got down on one knee and proposed to him in their local park in front of 60 of their closest friends and family.

Taking inspiration from a rock-painting craze which is sweeping the nation, where children are encouraged to get outdoors to find rocks, paint them, and re-hide them, Nicola Webster from Oswaldtwistle decided to paint and plant a very special rock of her own.

Four weeks later when the day came around, Nicola tricked her partner James Blackburn into going on a Sunday afternoon walk followed by a promised trip to the pub.

But little did James know what Nicola had in store.

Before he knew it James was surrounded by 60 of his closest family and friends in Rhyddings Park, Oswaldtwistle, and Nicola was down on one knee next to the special rock she had caringly created, saying ‘James Blackburn, will you marry me?!’

Speaking about the special afternoon, Nicola, a team leader at Outbound Marketing, said: “We’ve been together for 12-and-a-half years and when I thought of the idea I couldn’t get it out of my mind.”

When it came to the inspiration behind painting the rock, Nicola said she got the idea when hiding rocks with the couple’s two daughters, Emily Summer, 10 and Amber Rose, five.

She said: “We spent time going out and hiding our own rocks, but the girls were upset that we could never really seem to find others or see if people had picked our painted rocks up.

“That’s when I had the idea - I always knew James and I would be together forever and he’s so practical I could be waiting a lifetime for him to propose - so why not do something special, in a special place with special people.

“I took the rock from the house and painted it. This is one we will not be re-hiding.”

James, who is a deputy groundsman at Burnley FC, said:”I knew Nicola was ready for a wedding but I never dreamed it would be her proposing. It’s unconventional but that sums us up as a couple really. I wouldn’t want it any other way.”

“We had a special celebration with family and friends at the White Bull after and enjoyed it all. It was a very proud moment.”