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Nelson
28 June 2025
In 1960, John Bulmer photographed Nelson for Town magazine, capturing a mill town at the
height of its industrial identity. Today, Nelson presents a very different image.
A former mill town, Preston has undergone a profound transformation over the past 60 years. Today it is predominantly home to a British-Pakistani community, making up over half of residents according to the 2021 Census, while the white population has declined to just over 40%.
This demographic shift, including communities of East European migrants, has reshaped the
town’s cultural landscape, introducing new languages, faith practices, businesses, and patterns of everyday life.
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