Ballroom dancers take quick steps to Padiham Town Hall reopening

Residents and councillors flocked to the town hall and its famous ballroom this week, newly refurbished following the devastating Boxing Day floods of 2015.

Dozens of dedicated dancers filled the new ballroom to take their first quick steps on the new sprung dancefloor.

Mayor of Padiham Coun. Ken Buckley officially reopened the town hall with a ribbon cutting ceremony and told his fellow townsfolk that like many others he had cried when he saw the balroom “two inches deep in mud” following the floods.

A keen dancer himself, he said the new sprung dancefloor was just as good if not the better than Blackpool’s famous ballroom, and added that the building acted as a community centre for the town.

Burnley Council leader Mark Townsend also addressed those who had gathered inside.

Coun. Townsend said: “This is a big moment for Padiham. The restoration is an absolute credit to all those involved. The newly refurbished town hall and ballroom is not just for this generation to enjoy but for generations to come.

“Burnley Council was determined to bring this building back to its former glory. It will be a real community asset. I am delighted to be here to share this fantastic achievement with you all.”

Following the disastrous flooding of the building on Boxing Day two years ago, a complicated programme of reinstatement and flood resilience works was carried out, managed by Burnley Council and its business partner Liberata, with Rossendale builders Boys working as the main contractors.

British champion sequence dancers, Lewis Frobisher and Kate Bodill, both local students, took to the dancefloor with some of the Padiham veterans.

Other events and balls are being planned over the coming months.