COUNCIL tax-payers in Blackburn and Darwen will see their bills rise by 1.9per cent next month, it was decided this evening. The budget for the 2010/11 financial was agreed after a three-hour meeting at Blackburn Town Hall. The rise,
OSAYAMEN Osawe's stunning 102nd minute winner gave Blackburn Rovers under 18s a thrilling 2-1 win over Everton to set up an FA Youth Cup two-legged semi final against Chelsea. The 16-year-old bent the ball past Everton goalkeeper Adam Davies
STATE-of-the-art training facilities at Earby Cricket Club could steer youngsters away from anti-social behaviour, a councillor claims. The improvements are being made possible after the England and Wales Cricket Board allocated £24,000 to the West Craven
NO charges will be brought as a result of the death of a Blackburn Rovers supporter during last month’s match against Stoke City, it has been revealed. The Crown Prosecution Service said there was ‘insufficient evidence’ to prosecute anybody in relation
PLANS are underway to focus the next phase of Accrington Town Centre’s regeneration by transforming four key town centre areas. The creation of detailed plans for the ‘cultural heart of Accrington’ is said to be crucial for attracting investment
Haslingden Conservative Club closed on New Year’s Eve and is now up for sale. The three-storey building used to be a small hotel and houses a snooker table, lounge area, bar and dance floor. You begin to wonder whether the other clubs in Haslingden are
Between March 15th and 19th a Science Week for schools will be held at Helmshore Mills Textile Museum. Four 20 minute workshops will run simultaneously on electricity, energy resources, materials and power resources. Advanced booking is needed on 01706
LEGENDARY Clarets goalkeeper ‘Big Adam’ Blacklaw has died following a long battle with illness. Former players and Burnley FC chiefs today paid tribute to Adam, 72, who kept goal for the First Division Championship winning side of 1959/60. Following
A 25-FOOT sign promoting regeneration work in Darwen is being removed after a five-year battle by residents who said it was an eyesore. The sign, promoting the regeneration of Hindle Street and Queen Street, was erected by Blackburn with Darwen Council
A ROSSENDALE cleaner has won £36,000 from solicitors in Waterfoot after they dropped his compensation case. Chris Schofield, 52 from Haslingden, worked for TS Chemicals in the town for 7 years during which he said he developed a catalogue of
A FIREARMS officer has spoken of his “complete shock and disbelief” when he shot and fatally wounded a colleague from Burnley at point-blank range during a police training drill. The officer, named only as Chris at an inquest, said he acted instinctively
I KNOW that Members of Parliament have come in for a lot of stick recently. However, I cannot praise my MP Janet Anderson highly enough. I had financial problems not of my own making, and Janet helped sort out these in no time. I was really impressed
Lancashire Constabulary state: “We will do all we can to investigate your crime. Only when we have exhausted all available lines of enquiry and there is nothing more we can do, will we close a case.” And they operate on the basis of intelligent policing
FOR the premiere of Varekai, their latest spectacle to reach the UK (or those parts of it outside London, at least), Cirque Du Soleil have returned to the big top for a more traditional demonstration of their very special talents. Traditional, that
TO say Cosi fan tutte is a masterpiece is something of an understatement. But it needs to be repeated because even a masterpiece can be dragged down by a shoddy performance. Happily that was certainly not the case when Opera North once again brought
CAMEROON international midfielder Salomon Olembe will appear as a trialist for Burnley's reserve team at home to Manchester City tonight. The 29-year-old, who has 60 caps for his country and had been tipped as a real star of the future when
FURTHER steps are to be taken to deal with pigeon problems in Barnoldswick town centre. The West Craven Area Committee is to launch a campaign of public awareness aimed at deterring the birds from nesting in and around the town square. Coun David
AN EAST Lancashire woman has forgiven the IRA bombers who blew her leg off almost 20 years ago. Sue Hanisch suffered post-traumatic stress disorder for a decade after attack at Victoria Station, London in 1991. The 51-year-old said she
A MURDER victim was repeatedly kicked and his head was jumped on in a two-minute attack, a court heard. John Crabtree, 40, died from a head injury, the day after it is claimed he was subjected to violence by Matthew McKay on a canal towpath, near the
CHILDREN in different parts of East Lancashire had mixed fortunes getting in their first choice school. In Blackburn with Darwen seven per cent more youngsters secured their first choice secondary up 101 to 1,427. And 75 students were left with
EAST LANCASHIRE business ‘champions’ from across the area were rewarded at an event at Turf Moor, Burnley. People who have promoted enterprise and helped businesses in their area were presented with certificates by representatives from business support
THERE’S more than a hint that something’s wrong when a bank rewards its staff with £1.6 billion bonuses for losing £3.6 billion. Words like ‘obscene’ and ‘immoral’ spring to mind and so, too, does the biblical word ‘usury’ – the Old Testament ban on
Pictures from Rovers' 2-1 defeat away to Liverpool are now online. To view the gallery from the game, click here.
HYNDBURN Borough Council has been named as one of the country’s best employers in a national survey. Council leader Peter Britcliffe said he was ‘delighted’ at the news the council made the top 10 list of best employers to work for nationally in a
POLICE are appealing for information on a Chorley man on the run from prison. John Hindle, 30, who also uses the name Paul Hindle, was jailed for 32 weeks in June 2009 for wounding. He was released early on licence, but has breached the terms and
MORE than 100 partygoers had to be evacuated from a cabaret night in Darwen on Saturday night when a smoke machine set off the fire alarms. A soul and Motown special, featuring The Soultrain and a Diana Ross tribute act called Elicia, came to an abrupt
THE new Sainsbury’s supermarket in Colne is starting to take shape. The former Coach House Antiques site in North Valley Road, was bulldozed last year in preparation. It is expected that construction will last for around a year. The supermarket
SUNBEDS are to be removed from two council-run leisure centres in Hyndburn over cancer fears. Leisure in Hyndburn has two sunbeds at Hyndburn Sports Hall in Church and Norden Sports Hall in Rishton but after a review they are to be axed. In Blackburn
BURNLEY striker Steven Fletcher has broken a hand during training with the Scotland international squad today. Fletcher had linked up with Scotland ahead of their friendly with the Czech Republic but has now had to withdraw from the squad.
Cherry Fold Community Primary School, in Cog Lane, is appealing for donations of old mobile phones, used batteries, and empty ink cartridges.
BLACKBURN with Darwen council’s “Shuttle” newspaper costs £12,700 per edition to publish, it has been revealed. Nine editions are published each year. Blackburn with Darwen Council released the figure in response to a Freedom of Information Act
COMEDIAN Jason Manford is turning into his dad and he’s touring the UK telling all of his fans about it — including gigs in Blackburn on November 6 and 7. Following his total sell-out tour in 2009, the phenomenal success of his debut DVD and
THE North West’s greatest big band will be swinging to the sounds of the fabulous ’40s at Burnley on March 7. Enjoy a salute to Glenn Miller and the Big Bands with Paul Rigby and the Northern Jazz Orchestra featuring vocalist Faye Duxbury. Having performed
THE principal of a top East Lancashire college has been invited to Downing Street in recognition of its success. Blackburn College boss Ian Clinton received a call inviting him to visit Number 10 as the new University Centre received positive feedback
Alleyways have been bricked up to keep out the yobs on a Coppull estate. The first phase of works to provide a £250,000 revamp of the Longfield Avenue housing scheme are complete. Alleyways throughout the Chorley Community Housing (CCH
CLITHEROE school uniform company Trutex has been bought out by a specialist investment company. The Taylor Street-based company, which employs 97, will now get a new injection of cash from private equity firm Endless LLP. The amount
Up in the Air Nicola Abbott, Lostock Ms Sue Kane, Euxton Ray Baldwin, Little Lever Nathalie Rees, Cheadle Susan Fraser, Clifton Green BRFC v Stoke City Michael Howarth, Blackburn Lovesongs Sue Brindle
DON’T worry this is not a printing error – I meant to use the words bungle. Here is another example of how to waste money. It has been well documented that honey and bumble bee numbers are declining. One factor is a lass of habitat but there has
Local people have been recognised for their work encouraging others to start businesses. Business champions from across Pennine Lancashire were presented with certificates at Burnley Enterprise Haven.
Brendan Cole Caroline Mckinlay, Blackburn Rosanne Podmore, Westhoughton Ian Holden , Ladybridge Abba Mrs Pamela Gossage, Rothwell Emma Monks, Farnworth Janet O'Brien, Droylsden Sarah Connor Chronicles
The Invention of Lying – February 1 Cassandra Lennon, Farnworth B King, Bolton Philip Hunt, Westhoughton Elaine Carson, Bolton Lynn Walker, Bolton Plusnet – February 2 Mary Tait, Bolton Holiday
AN Army wife turned to crime and pocketed £2,000 of her bosses’ cash after her 18-year marriage crumbled, a court heard. Amanda Smethurst, 39, stole the cash in amounts of £10 and £20 twice a week when she was working as a cashier at Eastern Avenue Service
THE boss of an organisation that helps bring businesses closer to the community has urged firms to “get involved”. Community and Business Partners (CBP) chief executive Amanda Meachin said her firm, a £1million-turnover publicly funded organisation that
CREDITORS owed money by collapsed East Lancashire property company Dylan Harvey Residential are expected to find out this month whether they will get their money back. The Padiham-based developer was placed into administration with debts of at least
A NEW employers forum group has been formed for companies in Blackburn. The East Lancs Gateway group is holding its first meeting on March 11, with topics including transport and crime.
BURNLEY reserves take on rivals Manchester City in the Barclays Premier Reserve League North tonight. The game, which has been moved to Turf Moor from Accrington Stanley's Crown Ground, kicks off at 7pm. General admission is £4 for adults
I have every sympathy with residents who are being inconvenienced by the parking problems around Darwen health centre and the new leisure centre. Neither of these facilities will have enough parking space and the reason seems to be so that we can discourage
RAFA Benitez has taken a swipe at his old enemy Sam Allardyce after seeing his Liverpool side secure a fort-uitous 2-1 home win over Blackburn Rovers. The Spanish manager stated his side deserved the three points at Anfield yesterday, despite
Hundreds of people gathered to watch the unveiling of a statue honouring the 222 Chorley Pals who served in World War I. The event, which followed three years of fundraising culminated in the dedication of the 7ft statue of a uniformed soldier
LEADING business people from the borough have taken part in a ‘thought shower’ to come up with ways to support fledgling local firms. They met at the Enterprise Centre, at the ACE Centre in Cross Street, Nelson. They were joined by Business Link, Pennine
FEARS have been raised over a ‘dangerous’ junction where parked cars make it difficult for motorists to see if traffic is approaching. Highway chiefs have re-painted double yellow lines in Booth Road and Pleasant View, Waterfoot, to stop vehicles parking
PLANS to convert a former bank in Nelson town centre into a drug and alcohol misuse centre with a needle exchange will be discussed by councillors tonight. Traders have protested against voluntary body CRI’s plans to create the centre in the
A GROWING engineering firm is hoping to strike a deal with luxury carmaker Aston Martin as part of a £1million investment. BCW Engineering is in negotiations to make chassis parts for Aston vehicles, beloved of James Bond, as well as sports
Burnley must pay Manchester United £500,000 plus add-ons for defender Richard Eckersley after the fee was determined by a Football Association tribunal. Eckersley joined the Clarets last summer on a four-year deal after rejecting a new contract at Old
PHIL Cannon has urged Blackburn Rovers fans to get behind their young stars as their under 18s look to reach the FA Youth Cup semi-final. Rovers’ under 18s play Everton at Ewood Park tonight, (7pm ko), with a two-legged semi final against Chelsea
BRIAN Laws has backed Clarke Carlisle to bounce back from the mistakes that cost Burnley the chance to climb out of the relegation zone against Portsmouth. The central defender switched off when Frederic Piquionne opened the scoring in the
A PLAY to counter extremism and terrorism comes to Darwen for two performances today. ‘Not in My Name’, written and directed by Alice Bartlett, was originally commissioned by Lancashire Constabulary under the ‘PREVENT’ counter-terrorism agenda
I know you’ll find it hard to believe but I understand I can infuriate people! I put my dirty clothes near the washing basket, not in it Same with the washing up, near but not in the dishwasher I 'always' move the chair an inch or two before I
A DEVOTED Alice Cooper fan who has spent £40,000 following his idol only bought his first record by the star to get back at his mum. Nick Woodburn has seen his musical hero in concert 58 times and is now friends with the singer, after buying
With only four weeks to go the competition is really starting to kick in! The videos opening the show all seemed to be of the male contestants hurting themselves! We welcomed Robin back as head judge of the ice panel as he finished his Olympic
If you’re going to give up something, this is the time of year to do it. People are abandoning all sorts of habits for Lent, and this year I’ve been forced into joining them. The difference is, my forfeit isn’t based on religion, and it isn’t for 40
POLICE called to a Darwen house found a small piece of cannabis on the kitchen floor. Blackburn magistrates heard how the discovery lead police to complete a full search and they found nearly a kilogram of the drug in an upstairs bedroom.
MORE than 400 Hapton homes were left in darkness for up to almost seven hours in a power cut caused by a faulty cable. A United Utilities spokesman yesterday said the fault occurred at around 5.35pm on Saturday and was completely fixed by 11.55pm. As
Dodging a rail fare from Blackburn to Manchester has cost a Darwen commuter more than £300. Zahra Hussain, 19, of Olive Lane, was fined £175 by Hyndburn magistrates, plus the £16.40 fare in compensation to Arriva Trains Northern and £115 costs.
MOTORISTS fed up with queuing through Darwen town centre are turning residential streets into rat-runs, according to councillors. Streets surrounding Darwen Health Centre, including Tockholes Road, Everton Street and Vale Street are becoming increasingly
A THIRD of all complaints lodged by Lancashire police employees about their colleagues are for bullying or inappropriate behaviour. A report set to go before the Lancashire Police Authority on Wednesday shows there were 22 grievances lodged by police
A GAMBLER launched a one-man crime spree on schools, firms and community centres to find cash for his addiction. Peter Everall, 36, carried on after being caught twice by police and in total carried out more than 40 raids. He repeatedly struck at buildings
A DRUNK man had to call the fire service after getting his head stuck in his own back door. The apologetic middle-aged man, from Whitebirk Drive, Blackburn, had returned from a night out at 2.15am yesterday, but had lost his house keys. He smashed
A BLACKBURN man grimaced through the pain as he surrendered to a full body waxing session to raise money for a cancer charity. Daniel Almond, was cheered on by family and friends, as hot wax ripped the hair from his backs, chests, legs, arms and eyebrows
Liverpool are set to offer 15-year-old Raheem Sterling a £300,000 contract to join them. The Queens Park Rangers youngster is tipped as England's next big thing - even though he won't turn pro until he is 17. Rochdale manager Keith Hill is annoyed
High flying Barnoldswick Town will look to record another impressive win on the road tonight when they make the trip to Chadderton in the Vodkat League First Division. Barlick, in their first season in the league, will topple Stone Dominoes at the
Newcastle Town’s amazing run of 27 straight wins came to an unexpected end at the hands of Colne who battled for every ball and fully deserved the result. As expected, the runaway league leaders came out of the blocks strongly and the Colne
JOHN Hughes joked that he must have run over 10 black cats on his way to Dark Lane after being involved in one of most bizarre matches in his 30 years in the game. Hughes lost his keeper in the warm-up, had to put a striker in goal and saw two players
BARNOLDSWICK have moved to within a point of Vodkat League Division Two leaders Stone Dominoes with a hard-fought win at Eccleshall. Town knew what they were up against having already beaten Eccleshall in the cup earlier in the season. And their task
PADIHAM produced a poor performance on a tricky playing surface following heavy rain the previous day. Jon Lawless fired Formby in front on 16 minutes, curling in a free kick. Chris Ridehalgh had two great chances to equalise before the break but fired
CLITHEROE were left reeling after throwing away a two-goal lead in a rip-roaring encounter where all six goals came in the second half. The Blues dominated the first half with Alan Coar twice going close before Zac Clark was denied by Peter Collinge
CHORLEY paid the price for an error-strewn display against a slick Genesis side. Blunders at both ends of the pitch proved costly for the Magpies who were rocked by two early goals, the elusive Tom Ince laying on low crosses for Jack Dorney and Jordan
EVEN as I sit down to write this column, the horror show of Saturday’s 2-1 defeat to Portsmouth is still fresh in the memory. Pompey travelled north just hours after going into administration with question marks over their futures and relegation a certainty
SAM Allardyce believes Blackburn Rovers were ‘just a goalscorer away’ from a first league win at Anfield in more than a decade as Liverpool’s ruthless streak broke the visitors hearts. The Rovers boss was delighted with his side’s brave effort but
BURNLEY will spend another week in the bottom three following defeat to crisis club Portsmouth, but defiant manager Brian Laws said: “It hasn’t ended our season.” Although it was only the Clarets’ third loss this term, a run of only one win in 16 Premier
DRIVERS in Blackburn and Darwen face five years of traffic misery after water bosses unveiled plans for £35million of drainage works. The huge project, which is aimed at cleaning out the rivers Blakewater and Darwen, will run until October
Lancashire have lost their appeal to retain the services of Francois Du Plessis for the forthcoming season. Cricket director Mike Watkinson has confirmed that, despite months of concerted effort, Du Plessis, who was Todmorden’s professional three years
A MAN is facing at least five years in jail after police found a modified double barrelled pistol loaded with exploding bullets, designed to cause maximum damage, when they raided a house in Nelson. Haroon Rafiq, 36, was arrested just before the find
