I HOPE readers can help me contact a penfriend, with whom I have lost touch. I am hoping to be able to visit England soon and possibly meet him. His name is David Nelson and the last address I have is Waverley Gardens, Preston, but he may now live in
A MAJOR skills gap in East Lancashire is threatening the future of the local economy, an alarming report has revealed. The area is lagging behind the rest of the country when it comes to training and graduate recruitment. And the problem is so serious
JANET Anderson MP has written to the chairman of Granada asking him to reverse a TV ban on a popular folk dance group because they have blackened faces. The Britannia Coconutters, from Bacup, were to be followed by a film crew through their rehearsals
THE comments by Hyndburn councillors frustrated at people who criticise their traffic calming schemes (LET, July 10), are pathetic. While 'New Labour' is talking, quite rightly, about the virtues of education, they, the dinosaurs of Hyndburn Council,
THREE generations of the same family are still battling for compensation after their dream Kenyan safari holiday turned to disaster. Mrs Michelle Lamprecht, her 11-year-old daughter, Danielle, and her mother, Mrs Anne Burgess, all had to be airlifted
FORTY jobs were to be axed at the Scapa-Porritt factory in Cartmell Road, Blackburn. The company, which made textile parts for paper making machinery, blamed the job cuts on the recession and its effect on the paper industry and said it needed to reduce
SCOTSMAN Jimmy Anderson was celebrating the biggest pools win of all time - a £1,339,358.30 jackpot. Meat trucker Jimmy, of Alderton, Northants, normally had to get up at 3am to start his delivery round for British Beef. But following his win he was allowed
STUART Andrew's hopes of making it to the coveted first tee at Royal Troon in Thursday's Open Golf Championship came to nought. His second round 71, for a 141 total at Western Gailes, left the Clitheroe man a tantalising two shots out of a play-off spot
WOULD-BE pet owners in East Lancashire are being urged to think twice before taking on exotic animals in a bid to halt the rising number of cruelty cases. A craze for pets, such as iguanas, snakes, scorpions and crocodiles, has led the RSPCA to launch
A NURSERY is appealing for the public's help in raising cash to buy equipment for disabled children. Beehive Nursery in Blackburn is run by Kids Unlimited which wants each of their nurseries nationwide to raise £500 for the charity Whizz Kidz. The company
REGARDING the road bumps, etc in Hyndburn (LET, July 10), the Council may give themselves pats on the back for all the road obstructions they have erected. But if there is 30 per cent less traffic using Hyndburn for shopping because of them, I would expect
FUNDING could be available to groups involved in projects to spruce up their local community. Lancashire's Rural Action for the Environment has helped more than a dozen East Lancashire projects since 1995. Now the organisation, fronted by the Community
CHRIS Woods wants to help Chris Waddle reawaken the sleeping giant that is Burnley. The former England goalkeeper today compared his move to Turf Moor with his arrival in 1991 to Glasgow Rangers. And he believes that Burnley can complete a similar revival
A MAJOR study has revealed that a growing number of elderly people are dying within days of being admitted to East Lancashire nursing homes. The spiralling death rates are contained in a report which shows that 34 old folk died within a week of being
ROY Hodgson has told want-away Graeme Le Saux: 'Get on with your job'. The England full back has not changed his mind about wanting to leave Blackburn Rovers. But the Rovers boss is taking a tough stance after more discussions about the reservations Le
A HIT-LIST of Lancashire schools desperate for extra protection from vandals and intruders has been drawn up by County Hall bosses. The move follows rising concern about the increase in the number of attacks on schools across East Lancashire. Three schools
BURNLEY have agreed a £275,000 fee for Leeds United's Mark Ford - with Chris Waddle's appointment proving a decisive factor in the deal. And Waddle is also close to clinching a deal with a defender with details expected to be announced today. Ford's arrival
MIKE Watkinson is set to lead Lancashire's bid for their first hat-trick of Championship wins in two years against Sussex at Old Trafford tomorrow. Watkinson has not played in the Championship for a month because of his arm injury, with Mike Atherton
A SPILL of farm slurry into an East Lancashire river turned it into a toxic open sewer that wiped out thousands of fish for miles downstream. The Environment Agency calls it a "very serious pollution incident." So it is. But is their response that serious
THE DISTURBING disclosure today, that a growing number of old people are dying within days of going into nursing homes in East Lancashire, reveals a situation that needs urgent investigation. For though the findings come from a three-year study by health
SHARON CHEETHAM could grace the pages of a fashion magazine. But the 28-year-old with looks that turn heads spends her day in the company of sex offenders and other outcasts from society in a high security male prison. Rapists, child molesters and murderers
MAY we comment on your article (LET, July 5) on wind farms? Firstly, wind farms are not farms at all - they are large, grotesque industrial developments which have to be sited in areas where a suitable and sustained wind speed is available. This means
Peter White's Swedish Diary TALK to professional footballers about travelling and they will tell you there are miles and "Swedish miles." It's one of the reasons many of them groan when it's announced that the pre-season training camp will be held in
