LION Salt Works Museum is taking a trip back in time to discover just what fossils can tell us about the Earth millions of years ago.

The recently re-opened £10m museum will hold two days of ‘Fascinating Fossil’ ‘show and tell’ workshops as part of Earth Science Week.

Councillor Louise Gittins, cabinet member for culture, Leisure and Wellbeing Cheshire West and Chester Council, said: “The discovery of new dinosaurs and strange fossilised creatures is a subject that fires the imagination of everyone, especially children. The Lion Salt Works is delighted to be holding these Fascinating Fossil workshops and hopes young and old will be inspired by what they hear and see.”

Earth Science Week (October 10-18) is run by the Geological Society and features some of the most diverse and beautiful geology in the world.

The workshops will take place on Saturday, October 17 and Sunday 18 between 10.30am -12.30pm and 2pm - 4pm each day.

Normal admission prices will apply but there is no additional cost for the workshops and no need to book in advance.

Suitable for children and adults, Fascinating Fossils will involve handling fossilised dinosaur poo, petting a trilobite and everyone will take home a fossilised shark’s tooth. For budding palaeontologists there will also be tips about where and how fossils can be found ‘in the wild’.

Studying fossils helps scientists piece together the history of life, past climates and ancient landscapes and this will be an exciting ride through millions of years of geological time.

The workshops are being run by Northwich-born Cathrene Rowell. Cathrene has been a hobby fossil collector since an early age, and will answer your questions about fossils and geology in general. Cathrene is currently a PhD student at Keele University, studying subsidence as a result of salt and brine extraction in Cheshire. She is a member of the Geologists’ Association and a Fellow of The Geological Society.

The Lion Salt Works is one of the last four open-pan, salt-making sites in the world and its importance is recognised by its status as an Ancient Scheduled Monument as well as an Anchor point for the European Route of Industrial Heritage, a network of the most important industrial heritage sites in Europe. The Museum, opened in June this year, has already won two prestigious restoration awards.

In addition to a café, gift shop, butterfly garden there is an imaginative play area and plenty of free parking.