Accrington and Rossendale College have offered a lending hand to local dog bakery. Great Harwood based ‘Millie and Ruby’s Dog Bakery’ was hit by a devastating fire two weeks ago, caused by an electrical fault in the fuse box.

Accrington and Rossendale College have stepped up and agreed to lease their purpose-built bakery to Millie and Ruby’s Dog Bakery. Pictured [L-R] Diane Murphy and Denise Easton

Owner, Diane Murphy, keen to find a temporary home for the business, set about finding premises to use until the bakery can be up and running again.

Accrington and Rossendale College have stepped up and agreed to lease their purpose-built bakery to Millie and Ruby’s Dog Bakery for as long as they need it.

Diane commented:

“We are so incredibly grateful to the college. There was an overwhelming response for offers of help but the college facilities are first class – something I had no idea about prior to this happening, honestly, they’re outstanding! We, unfortunately, won’t be trading for a few weeks yet as we have to wait for approval from the Animal and Plant Health Agency, but when we do we know we have the support of Accrington and Rossendale College and it’s priceless.”

Diane has taken an ‘every cloud has a silver lining approach’ with regards to current events.

“We think this could be a really exciting partnership with the college,” she said, “there have been talks about the shop taking on apprentices or allowing students in for work experience once it’s up and running again. I also know that the college is sponsoring the Accrington Food Festival, which is an event we are hosting a stall at this year. I’m excited about this.”

Diane visited Accrington and Rossendale College this morning, Thursday 26th April, with the inspiration behind Millie and Ruby’s Dog Bakery – her dogs Millie, Ruby and Paddy – to meet with members of staff.

Denise Easton, Events Coordinator at Accrington and Rossendale College, said:

“We are happy to help in such circumstances. As soon as the college was made aware of the situation, we had to offer a lending hand. Networking with businesses and individuals in and around the town is really important to us. The team are baking dog biscuits to welcome them into the college. We are really looking forward to working with Millie and Ruby’s Dog Bakery.”

For more information about Accrington and Rossendale College and the facilities, they have visit www.accross.ac.uk

For more information about Millie and Ruby’s Dog Bakery visit www.millieandrubysdogbakery.co.uk