BOLTON Family History's services may have been suspended due to the virus- but they have issued advice on how people can start recording their family history from the comfort of their own home.

The society said: "Like most organisations, the Bolton Family History Society have had to freeze the programme of monthly meetings for the foreseeable future, but through our online Help Desk we are happily helping people with their family history research.

"During this ”Lock Down” period you might be looking for in-house activities, so why not take this opportunity to start recording your own family history?"

The society has suggested that older family members who have custody of memories and family can begin some documentation of themselves and their ancestors lives.

This includes finding and labelling old photographs- using pencils to avoid damage- and storing them in airtight containers to preserve them.

Drafting out a family tree with details of everything you can remember about the people and situations in it can help provide a more thorough record.

Everything can be jotted down as a preservation of a period in time- from whether you smoked, had a job or even a colour TV.

Children can talk to older family members, via phone, to help build a picture of what life was like for their family in decades done by.

They can also use the time spent in the home, to do audio and video recordings of other family members stories, to preserve the sound and visuals.

If people struggle in their research or would like further tips, further advice can be sought by visiting boltonhelpdesk@mlfhs.org.uk.