A PROJECT to help brighten up Bacup is under way after five bird sculptures landed in the town.

They are part of the Market Street Gateways Project in partnership with Bacup Consortium and Groundwork Rossendale.

The project is being funded by Lancashire County Council and the Single Regeneration Budget to make Bacup's entrance impressive and unique.

The sculptures will be the main focal point but improvements have also been made to the railings and steps leading up to Plantation Street.

Claire Sims, Groundwork Rossendale project worker, said: "The project is taking place in an area of Bacup with great historical significance.

Plantation Street was home to hundreds of mill workers in the Industrial Revolution and was an example of the worst slum housing outside London in the early 20th century.

The slums in Plantation Street and Market Street were eventually demolished in the 1960s."

The concept and designs for the sculptures and railings were developed through a series of community art workshops with local metal artists Ammira. Claire added: "It was felt important to represent Bacup's historic past but also to look to the future."