MORE than 50 brass bands from across the North West travelled to Blackburn to blow their own trumpets at a prestigious competition. The 52nd Annual Championships of the North West Area Brass Bands Association was held at King George's Hall for the second
PUPILS and staff at some of East Lancashire's most successful schools were celebrating today after a national report put them among the most outstanding, improving and highly effective in the country. Chief Inspector of Schools Chris Woodhead singled
COUNCIL house tenants in East Lancashire owe £2.3million in rent arrears, it was revealed today. The Government has published a league of shame to highlight which authorities are the worst at collecting rent from tenants. Tenants in Blackburn and Darwen
CLARETS chairman Barry Kilby will meet Ray Ingleby in the next few weeks to thrash out a working formula with Burnley's newest board member. Ingleby was unanimously voted onto the Turf Moor board last night after being given the backing of Kilby, Clive
I FOLLOW the Blackburn Hawks on the Internet as I live in Canada. They are a terrific team and when I've been in England, I have enjoyed their games immensely. But I do have a few questions as to current developments: 1 - Wouldn't the Hawks' management
JASON Wilcox hopes to grab the international lifeline thrown to him by Howard Wilkinson and bring some light to what threatened to be the darkest two weeks of his season. The Blackburn Rovers winger, admitting he was "chuffed to bits" by his late England
A YOUNG dad was found hanged in a police cell with the cord of a hooded sweatshirt after being arrested on suspicion of shoplifting, an inquest was told. Paul Barry Buchanan, 21, of St Paul's Street, Low Moor, Clitheroe, had been suffering from depression
PUPILS at Ribblesdale School, Clitheroe, raised nearly £2,000 for medical charities in memory of deputy headmaster Mike Watkins, who died from a muscle weakening illness. They gave £1,625 for a ventilator to Withington Hospital, Manchester, which had
A FRAIL pensioner was forced out of her home after being raided by burglars six times at her house on Audley Range, Blackburn, where Cecilia Barrow had lived for 83 of her 86 years. While she was out, the thieves stole a television set donated by good
A WHOPPING £2.3 million is owed in rent arrears by council tenants in East Lancashire. And, quite rightly, the government is telling local authorities to get to grips with this debt. For the ones who suffer for it are the honest tenants who pay their
CRICKET: Great Harwood have signed an experienced Indian batsman Shantanu Sugwekar as professional for this summer's Ribblesdale League campaign. Sugwekar, aged 32, also bowls right-arm medium pace or off-spin and has represented his country at under-
CHORLEY caretaker boss Jim McCluskie has a score to settle when the Magpies take on Accrington Stanley in a UniBond League Challenge Cup third round replay at the Crown tonight. McCluskie was sacked after a similar spell as Stanley caretaker last season
NOW don't get me wrong. I love football, in fact I adore everything about it - a crisply hit pass, the ball billowing the back of the opposition's net, the roar of the crowd. It's the stuff of life. However, there are times when you feel compelled to
POLICE found a pensioner's £1,900 savings and other stolen property tucked away in a bath pipe when they searched a woman's home. Burnley Crown Court heard how Deborah Holden's life had been in turmoil after her boyfriend committed suicide in custody
A TWO-week long investigation into some of the uses of modern technology included a close look at newspaper production for around 60 youngsters. All pupils in year six at Hyndburn Park Primary School made the journey from Accrington to our head office
YOUNG artists used their creative skills to paint and draw a picture to promote the safe use of escalators. Last year, a series of talks was held to teach schoolchildren how to use the borough's market escalators in safety and as a follow-up the youngsters
ANGRY councillors are demanding that an official letter is sent to North West Water condemning the amount of time it has taken to carry out repairs on the A666. And Liberal Democrats in Darwen want changes in the law which would see utility companies
PUPILS and staff at some of East Lancashire's most successful schools were celebrating today after a national report put them among the most outstanding, improving and highly effective in the country. Chief Inspector of Schools Chris Woodhead singled
PROPOSALS to tax wealthy couples' child benefit to help pay for education schemes to help poorer teenagers have been backed by East Lancashire MPs. Pendle MP Gordon Prentice has supported the idea and his Burnley Labour backbench colleague Peter Pike
MY HUSBAND and son are Rovers season ticket holders, but this season are at an unfair disadvantage with the club selling £10 tickets. And if you lived in Lancaster and receive the Citizen newspaper, you could claim free tickets. My son, who is 10, came
A MAJOR deal for more planes to train America's 'Top Gun' fighter pilots is being celebrated by East Lancashire aerospace workers. The latest news - which is subject to approval from the American defence budget - will see work on the T45 Goshawk project
A STORE manager reached the finals of a national competition. David Buchan, boss of the Focus Do it All in Bank Top, Blackburn, made it through to the last four in the Superstore Manager of the Year contest. He was nominated for his work in overseeing
NOW is the perfect time for new construction and refurbishment work in Lancashire, says the Royal Institution of Chartered Surveyors. Andrew Holt, from the Lancashire branch, said: ''Lancashire's construction industry is in quite good shape, although
BLACKBURN Rovers are hoping their latest signing will shoot them straight to the top of the league. James Selman, 10, is Rovers' latest star player and Ewood Park bosses are hoping his silky skills will help to bring silverware back to Blackburn - in
The Buck Inn at Cowpe will now go forward to the regional final of the National Community Pub Awards and the chance to win a share in £21,000 prize money. Other East Lancashire pubs newly nominated are the Dog and Partridge, Baxenden, and the Griffin
OH, WHAT a wonderful weekend for Blackburn Rovers fans! Thousands will be rejoicing. Was it the 3-1 win at Villa Park? No. Was it the return of Chris Sutton? No. It was the transfer request by Tim Flowers. Thousands of prayers appeared to have been answered
A TOP-LEVEL investigation has been launched after a motorist collapsed and died seconds after he had been interviewed by police. The Police Complaints Authority (PCA) is to investigate the death of John Anthony Wilkinson, 59, of Anderson Road, Wilpshire
REGARDING the red and yellow card system, introduced by FIFA for the guidance of referees, all lovers of football agree that dirty play should be outlawed. But it is eradicating commonsense and discretion. In normal circumstances, these qualities would
283 days. Weary, doubt-ridden days, devoid of any injection of that magic potion that sends the blood of football fans coursing happily through the veins. Then miracle of miracles, an away win! As long as I can remember, a visit from Rovers has rarely
OUTRAGED licensees are on a collision course with Home Secretary Jack Straw over plans to 'name and shame' pubs with a history of drink-fuelled violence. The Blackburn MP wants doctors and nurses to help create a league table of danger spots in a bid
PETER White and I long since gave up on trying to achieve consensus on the vexed question of referees. Even over the most convivial of San Miguels on the Costa Del Sol, I was unable to convince him that Premiership officials did not have three sixes surreptitiously
Organ Recital, Blackburn Cathedral, 1pm-1.30pm. Aglow Chapter of Women's fellowship meet Bank Top Neighbourhood Centre, Oakenhurst Road, Blackburn, 7.15pm. All ladies invited. Speaker: Chur Yue Brian. Rossendale Organ and Keybord Club meet Rossendale
EVERY town has its trouble-prone pubs where, too often, drink-inspired violence breaks out and its victims end up at hospital, frequently creating more bother there. And any scheme which may curb this menace - if only for the sake of the hard-pressed
GIRL power was in abundance in Padiham as 40 girls aged 14 to 21 created a billboard to celebrate International Women's Day. They were taking part in a project organised by Mary Parker from Lancashire County Council's Youth and Community Service at Padiham
POLICE in Burnley have renewed their plea for help in finding a man who they believe carried out a serious sexual assault on a teenage girl nearly six months ago. The victim, who was 16 at the time of the attack in the early hours of August 28, has recently
A COMMUNITY leader from Burnley is calling on the Government to review the case of two men imprisoned 15 years ago for their part in the killing of an Indian diplomat. Coun Mozaquir Ali has joined a nationwide campaign for a review of the cases of Abdul
A TEENAGER stood in for her boyfriend and went out burgling to prevent the ex-convict from getting into trouble again.. Burnley Crown Court heard how part-time cleaner Joanne Denver, 19, fell in with a "bad lot" and started taking heroin. She went back
TRAINEE chartered accountant John Beeston has figured in a national ranking. John, who works at Porter, Matthews and Marsden's Burnley offices has been awarded a prize by the Institute of Chartered Accountants for his perfomance in one of its examination
DISABLED sportspeople and the parents of handicapped children are among those set to benefit from the Mayor of Hyndburn's charity bash later this month. The Mayor, Coun Ian Ormerod, has changed the name of the annual extravaganza, which is called the
AN £8 million investment programme is under way at Cavalier Carpets. The firm is expanding with new premises on Shadsworth Business Park which will eventually house the firm's manufacturing, warehousing and offices. Last year, it acquired 30,000 sq ft
A NEW partnership is helping bridge the skills gap in East Lancashire. Earby Light Engineers, Pendle Training and ELTEC have joined forces to develop an adult apprenticeship programme. The scheme is similar to the Modern Apprenticeship programme offered
A CATALOGUE of disasters including fires, floods and motorway mayhem hit the headlines as young reporters in Accrington filled front pages with dramatic news. The activity, run in class by NIE Co-ordinator Rita Shaw, was just one of the events of a busy
