A MAN who paid schoolboys to perform sexual acts has been jailed for two years. Martin Walmsley, 30, of Wensley Road, Blackburn, paid a 15-year-old a total of £700 for sexual favours. Nicholas Simmonds, prosecuting, alleged that Walmsley had sexual encounters
STAFF at Blackburn Citizens Advice Bureau will keep the branch running after it was suspended from its national association. The National Association of Citizen Advice Bureaux is calling for a shake-up in the management committee after an industrial tribunal
A POSTMAN with over 20 years unblemished service was jailed because of a "moment of utter madness." Blackburn magistrates heard that Brian Topping cracked under an "emotional hammering" and stole from letters. Topping, 46, of Grindleton Road, Blackburn
FORGOTTEN man Michael Williams has been handed the chance to kick-start his career with Oxford United. Williams has linked up with the First Division club for a trial spell. But his hopes of impressing manager Malcolm Shotton in a match situation have
WORRIED parents of children with learning difficulties have been promised that no special schools in the borough will be closed without full consultation. Blackburn with Darwen Council education bosses have been reviewing education in three of the special
ARETHA Franklin could not have put it better . . . R-E-S-P-E-C-T. It has soon become abundantly clear that is a key word in the Brian Kidd dictionary as he strives to build a lasting Ewood revival. And the respect is obviously mutual. Not just between
Cafe in the Crypt, Blackburn Cathedral, 12 noon to 2.30pm. Darwen Disabled meet ICI Club, Bridge Street, Darwen, 8pm. "Mother Goose" pantomime, Oswaldtwistle Civic Theatre, 7.30pm. Blackburn Flower Club meet Trinity United Reformed Church Hall, Brownhill
A PROPOSED agricultural building described as a "cricket pavilion or modern-day supermarket" was given the thumbs-down by councillors. Ribble Valley Council's planning committee heard that William Archer wanted to erect the 24 metre-wide structure for
BUILDERS are being ordered to pull down two houses that tower above nearby properties, and have been slammed for "blatantly disregarding plans." Ribble Valley Council's planning committee has decided that Barnfield Construction, of Lomeshaye Industrial
Internet column by Valerie Cowan GIRL group Cleopatra are comin' atcha again - this time through the internet. The trio from Moss Side in Manchester have launched their official website. The girls - Zainam, Cleopatra and Yonah Higgins - are still in their
A HOMEGROWN pantomime broke all records at the King George's Hall, Blackburn, after selling more tickets than any other show at the venue. Beauty and the Beast was the first pantomime produced at the hall itself starring Home and Away's Ross Newton and
BURNLEY'S Labour leaders faced a crisis of conscience as the town headed for one of the highest poll tax rises in the country. Burnley's average rate bill of £288 per household turned into a demand for £279 per adult, meaning charges were set to double
IN the run-up to Christmas, our band was invited to play for the people of Accrington. Thanks to their generosity, the band raised a total of £529.20, for which we are most grateful. BYRON GRIFFITHS (Bolton and District Pipe Band), Highfield Road, Farnworth
HOW can you spot a true dog lover? Watch them scoop the poop! If you love dogs, clean up after them. Dogs are intelligent, faithful creatures but cannot use a plastic bag after themselves - we can. Why let dogs get a worse name than they have already
I HAD some sad feelings when I read about the closure of the Polish Ex-Servicemen's Club in Blackburn (LET, January 6). My husband and I held our silver wedding party there in 1985 and we used to go there regularly on Saturday evenings and had many a
YOUR leader on the Christmas and New Year campaign by the police against drink-driving and the Chief Constable's letter in your Opinion column (LET, January 8) still leave many questioned unanswered. What legislation were the police using to stop 32,000
CRICKET: Todmorden CC chairman Malcolm Heyworth has admitted the signing of West Indian Vasbert Drakes was a "disaster". Heyworth said: "Temperamentally he was never able to lift and encourage the team as a professional should, and never showed any desire
I READ with interest Mr Brian Watson's comments (Letters, January) regarding the breakdown of his central heating over the Christmas period, and the lack of response from any service engineer or plumber. I was wondering if he had contacted the engineer
MANY folk are dissatisfied about the pathetic, dreary programmes churned out on the five main TV channels over the Christmas period. They were saturated with kiddies' programmes, with intermittent repeats of 'repeat' films, with only brief respite (possibly
A fire which claimed the life of an 87-year-old farmer is thought to have started through old electrical wiring and spread because of old wallpaper. Richard Hindle, of Gaulkthorn Farm, Broadfield, Oswaldtwisle, was found dead by his housekeeper in his
A NEW series of boardroom briefings for East Lancashire managers has been unveiled. The series, organised by ELTEC, is aimed at helping middle and senior managers get to grips with the latest techniques to run their businesses better. Topics for the 1999
CHILDREN with learning difficulties are caught up in plans for a shake-up of the education system for disabled children in Blackburn and Darwen. Proposals considered by councillors last night could mean some of the area's six special schools being closed
FUNDING for a major flood defence scheme in Pendle is set to get the go ahead this week. The North West Flood Defence Committee (RFDC) will be asked to approve a £2.5 million rise in the levy put on local authorities across the North West to pay for flood
MORE High Street "names", a better town centre bus service, a multiplex cinema and better security would bring shoppers back into Nelson, a major survey of local people has revealed. More than eight out of ten people who took part in a consultation on
WHAT I find amazing about Labour at last being shown up by the Mandelson affair and the revelations about Robin Cook as no different from the rest is not that the party has suffered in the opinion polls, with its rating slipping below 50% for the first
ROADSIDE protesters today urged long suffering motorists to join their campaign to end months of traffic chaos on the A666 through Darwen. Councillor Mary Leaver (pictured) and other Darwen Labour Party members handed out more than 1,200 bright orange
HER officers having stopped more than 32,000 drivers during the force's month-long Christmas and New Year blitz against drink-driving for a pathetic five arrests is hailed as a success by Lancashire's Chief Constable, Pauline Clare. Well, she would, wouldn't
A SCHEME to build eight two-bedroomed flats on land off Exchange Street, Darwen, looks set to be given the green light by councillors. Several residents have complained to the council about the proposed three-storey block of flats, saying they would be
WORRIED parents of children with learning difficulties have been promised that no special schools in the borough will be closed without full consultation. Blackburn with Darwen Council education bosses have been reviewing education in three of the special
TWO men on a funeral wake kicked a father of seven to death outside a pub in Accrington, a jury was told. Steven Taylor, 24, of Aitken Street, and Brandon Hayhurst, 23, of Whalley Road, both Accrington, deny murdering Ray Hampson, 39, of Slaidburn Drive
More than 60 residents in London Road, Blackburn were without electricity for over an hour yesterday when Norweb cut off their supply in order to deal with an underground cable fault. One home lost its supply at 11.52am and did not have it restored until
FAMILY and friends who had planned a special surprise for great-grandmother Emily Bradley were forced to celebrate her 100th birthday by her hospital bed yesterday as she recovered from a fall. But staff on ward D1 at Queen's Park Hospital, Blackburn,
A FIVE-POINT action plan to get axed staff at one of Pendle's largest firms back into work has been drawn up after a top level meeting with bosses. The American-owned Lear Corporation will close its Colne factory later this year with the loss of 350 jobs
KEVIN Davies has been readmitted to hospital for more tests after suffering a recurrence of the severe throat problems which laid him low earlier in the season. The Rovers striker, who scored on his last appearance against Charlton in the FA Cup, was
STEVE DAVIS is home and he's here to stay. Davis is just two games into his second spell at Turf Moor following a three-and-a-half-year exile at Luton Town. But the Burnley defender is adamant that this time its for keeps. "I wanted to make this my last
SECONDARY school children across East Lancashire are being warned against taking mobile telephones to school after some students began taking calls in class. Headteachers throughout the area have acted simultaneously to ban pupils from using the the 90s
JUST as Blackburn with Darwen Council is provoking controversy by proposing the closure of two old people's homes, now it courts more concern with plans to rationalise its special schools for children with learning difficulties. One or more of four highly-regarded
WITH all the Christmas and New Year celebrations over, I awoke early on Monday, January 4, feeling rather depressed. It was another dark and miserable winter's day. Then, suddenly, from the garden, came the most beautiful singing of a bird. It sang such
LAST year, I appealed to your readers to take any leftover foreign coins into their local Cancer Research Campaign shop or Boots the Chemist. The response has been phenomenal. So far, £90,000-worth of foreign coins have been donated for the Cancer Research
WHAT on earth is John Blunt doing, talking abut nose rings when a man is homeless? (LET, January 6). Imagine suggesting the man does not want a job. There are many jobs where a nose ring is perfectly acceptable. Would you prefer it if Michael Herrington
A 45-year-old woman found dead in her car is thought to have been there overnight. Sheila Smalley, of Herbert Street, Burnley, was discovered at 9.15am yesterday in the car park at Barnoldswick Civic Theatre. She was sitting in the driving seat of a Land
JOBS are on the end of a telephone line in Burnley as a new recruitment team gets into top gear. Employment Services Direct, based at Burnley Jobcentre, has dealt with 450 calls inquiring about vacancies since it was set up just a week ago. And that has
POTTERY collecting mayoress Vera Selby was given a VIP tour of the PenDelfin factory in Burnley. Accompanied by her husband the Mayor Coun Eric Selby, Vera toured the studios met the staff and saw the whole of process from casting to the finishing touches
KEVIN Davies has been readmitted to hospital for more tests after suffering a recurrence of the severe throat problems which laid him low earlier in the season. The Rovers striker, who scored on his last appearance against Charlton in the FA Cup, was
SUPERMARKET giant Morrisons, which has a major town centre store in Blackburn, saw sales over Christmas leap by more than 14 per cent. The firm said December 23 was its busiest trading day ever. And Matalan, which has a store in Accrington, reported sales
TWO men on a funeral wake kicked a father of seven to death outside a pub in Accrington, a jury was told. Steven Taylor, 24, of Aitken Street, and Brandon Hayhurst, 23, of Whalley Road, both Accrington, deny murdering Ray Hampson, 39, of Slaidburn Drive
Nature Watch with Ron Freethy ONE of the most common birds to be found along our watercourses is the moorhen. Perhaps because it is so common it is underrated. What a pity it would be not to enjoy watching such a fascinating species. In the 19th century
ECONOMIC development firm Enterprise plc has seen profits more than double. The firm, involved in initiatives in East Lancashire including a training centre at the Globe Centre in Accrington and Blackburn Technology Management Centre, saw pre-tax profits
BUSINESS failures in the region rose by four per cent last year despite falls throughout the rest of the country. A total of 159 receiverships were recorded in the North West in 1998 compared with 153 in 1997 according to figures released by KPMG. And
COUNCIL house rents in Pendle will go up by an average of 89p per week from April. Councillors agreed the 2.4 per cent rise in rent bills last night. It means, for example, that the weekly rent for a one bedroom flat in Clayton Street, Nelson, will rise
WHAT a ridiculous notion it is - yet one seriously put forward by an advisory group set up with the government's blessing - that fathers as well as mothers are given three months' paid leave from work when they have a baby or adopt a child. The cost to
THE campaign by bleeding-heart liberals for the slapping of children to be outlawed, so youngsters have the same legal protection against assault as adults, has much going for it in strict logic. But reality knows differently. For what would be the usphot
BUILDERS were baffled when they ripped up an old floor - and found an old bridge! The mysterious stone structure came to light in the cellar as builders were renovating one of three empty shops in Bridge Street, Darwen. Now they are puzzling what it's
