It was streamed to 52 schools in Blackburn with Darwen and to families and communities. Borough mayor Cllr Derek Hardman has presented her with a special award for her work. He said: “We are very grateful for all the work Christina has undertaken within our community in such challenging times.” Ms Gabbitas’ festival was organised through the charity Children’s Literature Festivals from Blackburn Library with the help of library staff and a team of authors and illustrators. She said: "The past 18 months has been challenging for everyone and children have missed out on so much, I wanted to let them know that we were still there for them. The original date had to be changed but I didn’t want to give up.”