A NEW project is aiming to establish 15 businesses in Blackburn over the next year as the town looks to encourage young people’s creative talents.

‘Blackburn Creates’ is working alongside Bootstrap Enterprises, in Railway Road, and Blackburn College, together with Blackburn is Open.

The project is aimed at giving young creative entrepreneurs the best possible chance of starting a sustainable business.

Whether it’s art, fashion, textiles, design, animation, graphic design, or any other creative work, the project is aimed at providing help, and support, to turn talents into trading.

It forms part of the RBS Inspiring Enterprise initiative, which is aiming to get 100,000 young people nationally to explore self-employment and set up a business by the end of 2015.

Alistair Clarke, inspiring enterprise champion at Bootstrap, said: “There are lots of talented and creative young people in Blackburn, but the idea of working for themselves seems a massive step. So we’re here to help with some of the basics skills self-employed people need, like how to set up as a sole trader, understanding cash flow, work-ing out what price to sell your goods for – and all those other elements of running a bus- iness that seem daunting at first.

“Finding a job can be tough, especially if you are young, so we want people to consider bec-oming self-employed as a real option.”

Bootstrap Enterprises has been helping people across Pennine Lancashire to start their own business for more than 25 years.

In the last 10 years, Bootstrap has helped more than 600 new businesses to start and flourish.

To find out more, visit www.blackburncreates.co.uk or email inspiring.enterprise@bootstrap.org.uk