THREE major visitor attractions in Keighley are uniting for the first time during this year’s Heritage Open Days.

Ingrow Loco Museum, Cliffe Castle Museum and East Riddlesden Hall will launch their joint venture this Friday at 4pm at Ingrow railway station.

Everyone is welcome to join Keighley MP John Grogan at the launch and ride on an open-top vintage bus.

The Heritage Open Days will run from Thursday to Sunday.

Ingrow Loco, which opens daily from 10am to 4pm, will host guided tours of parts of its workshop not normally open to the public.

Visitors can also get up close to the LNWR Coal Tank No 1054 locomotive, and chat with the museum’s new costumed guides.

At Cliffe Castle Museum on Saturday September 9, social history curator Heather Millard will talk about the Cottingley Fairies, followed by a tour of the museum’s exhibition Fairy Folklorey.

Places at the 1pm talk must be booked by calling 01535 618231.

There will be a host of activities at East Riddlesden Hall on Saturday and Sunday, September 9 and 10, from 10.30am to 4.30pm.

Attractions at the 17th century National Trust property include stick trails, mud pies, den building, bug-spotting, puzzles, traditional games and crafts.

Visitors can also try butter-making in the hall’s the Great Barn days between 2pm and 3pm.

Ingrow Loco spokesman Keith Whitmore said all three visitor attractions had organised separate events in the past for Heritage Open Days but never worked together.

He said: “It’s the start of future working together – joined up work really helps us all.

We’d like to work more with Cliffe Castle because it’s about local history and they do a lot of education with local children.

“The more tourism we bring into town, the better it is for local traders, and it disperses the visitors. Haworth gets very busy in summer. We’ve got as much in Keighley as there is in Haworth.”

One existing partnership is that National Trust members receive free access to Ingrow Loco because its Coal Tank locomotive is actually owned by the National Trust.

Ingrow Loco Museum and its ‘Rail Story’ attraction includes a Learning Coach whose displays includes aspects on the history of the village of Ingrow.

Ingrow Loco already works closely with the Vintage Carriages Trust, which runs the Museum of Rail Travel, also at Ingrow Station.

Also as part of Heritage Open Days, St Andrew’s Church in Kildwick will host guided tours and bell-ringing demonstrations on Saturday and Sunday from noon to 4pm.