THE 'thread' level was raised to critical at the weekend as the Westhoughton Yarn Bombing Festival came to town.

Woolly creations including a child, bunting and decorated benches adorned the town centre as organisers sought to brighten up the place for visiting families.

The town hall was awash with yarn, as were many other locations in Market Street, Ditchfield Gardens and Daisy Hill Station.

Elizabeth and Stuart Haynes, owners of dog groomers Pawsilicious in Market Street, got into the spirit of things and provided their own dog-themed twist with a yarn-made ‘woof’ displayed in the window.

Mrs Haynes said: “It seems to bring a lot of attraction to Westhoughton. It is quite fun but it took us a while to get the displays ready. I had my assistant in and we spent hours making them but we were all in favour of doing it. I think it has made the town more colourful. I do think we should do more because a lot of people do not know that we are here and it gives people a little bit more incentive to shop around locally.”

Cllr David Wilkinson said: “A lot of time has been given on these displays and it really is good. It is just for a couple of days but a lot of effort goes into it. People do go and have a look but you have to appreciate that there is a group of people in Westhoughton who spend a lot of time and effort on it. It makes the town a lot more colourful. I think it is a great thing for Westhoughton.”