One of Blackburn's biggest mosque building projects of recent years is taking shape.
Building work on Preston New Road on the site of the former Westholme Nursery school has been moving at a rapid pace in recent months.
The new mosque and community facility is being built by the Issa Foundation a family charity run by EG Group owners Mohsin and Zuber Issa.
The former infant and first school at the site was demolished and plans were revealed for the mosque in December 2020.
The imposing pillars at the entrance will make up a defining feature.
Brickwork on the 'community building' has been completed ahead of the mosque
Work had halted for a period of time but now the frame to the traditional dome and 29 metres high minaret structures have gone up.
Further work to complete the shell of the buildings is ongoing and the pillars which will make up the entrance to the mosque can be seen for the first time.
The entrance to the site will be off Preston New Road and landscaping work was also being completed on the site around the buildings themselves.
An image taken from Preston New Road looking up towards the entrance
Plans for the £5million scheme were approved in mid-2021.
The plans said that applicants the Issa Foundation would pay £30,000 to improve safety at the junction of nearby Preston New Road, Revidge Road and Billinge End Road and employ parking marshals to reduce road safety risks.
The facility will look to serve those living around the areas of Revidge, Corporation Park and Beardwood. It will be the seventh mosque within walking distance of the area.
It will also become the second most expensive mosque to be built in the north west behind the Raza Jamia Masjid in Accrington which cost upwards of £8.6m when it opened in 2017.
Muslims across the world are looking forward to the month of Ramadan which begins later this week. People fast from sunrise to sunset during the month and attend Taraweeh prayers in the evenings at their local mosque.
What the new mosque may look like once completed
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