STAFF at the wallcoverings arm of Borden Decorative Products have picked up the Investors in People award. The Darwen-based firm, behind names including Crown Wallcoverings, Shand Kydd and Storeys, has become the 88th East Lancashire employer to be recognised
THE Business Links scheme for East Lancashire could be up and running within six months. The government has given the go-ahead for six outlets in the area under the scheme which is the final one in the country to be approved. Funding of £1.7 million over
COUNCILLORS seeking to preserve a dying craft have cleared the way for a bookbinder to sell his business as a going concern. John Baron has been running his hand-craft business from his home in Whalley Road, Clayton-le-Moors, for almost nine years. Now
VILLAGERS in the Ribble Valley are rallying together against plans for a massive building scheme in their community. A planning application which would see hundreds of houses, industrial units and offices on the Calderstones Hospital site in Whalley was
SCHOOLS in East Lancashire could face a crisis over too many pupils in a few years. The number of surplus places in primary and secondary schools in the area has already dropped this year, and the number of pupils entering secondary schools is set to
VOLUNTEER bobbies have been praised by Lancashire's top police officer for their service to the community. Chief Constable Pauline Clare was speaking at an awards ceremony to mark the long service achievements of 19 members of the county's Special Constabulary
AROUND 1,000 homes across Pendle and Ribble Valley are to get special marker pens so householders can post-code their property. The ultra-violet pens, donated by Burnley-based security firm Protect Security Systems and presented to the police at Nelson
LANCASHIRE were facing a daunting task to avoid the follow-on at Chelmsford today after Graham Gooch and Stuart Law led an Essex run-feast. Essex resumed on 448-6 looking to make Lancashire suffer even more in the punishing heat before letting their batsmen
A TEENAGE swimmer who died in a cold reservoir on a hot day probably had an attack of cramp, an inquest heard. A jury returned a verdict of accidental death on Jonathan Ashebu, 16, of Carnforth Close, Blackburn, who was a competent swimmer but drowned
TODMORDEN have not lifted a Lancashire League title since 1957. But all that could be about to change. A memorable play-off defeat against Nelson in 1986 was the last time Centre Vale supporters got close to the coveted silverware. A decade later, and
I WOULD be grateful if, through your newspaper, I could extend my thanks publicly to the individuals (a number of them anonymous) and to the various companies who donated money, equipment or materials which assisted in our recent venture, where volunteer
TOMORROW Wembley Stadium, the grand old lady of English football, sees the launch of Euro 96, the biggest sporting event to be held on our shores since the World Cup in 1966. Thousands of football fans from all over Europe will witness what we hope will
FOR the last decade and more Britain has been falling behind Europe's leading nations in educational standards. One of the reasons has been the insistence by education "experts" and the teaching unions that mixed ability teaching in comprehensive schools
A FORMER Darwen cricket professional has been killed in a car crash. Johan Johnson had to return to South Africa part way through last season after he suffered a back injury. The promising youngster played for the Orange Free State and was the most costly
THIS photograph of a Blackburn junior football team was taken as war clouds gathered over Europe in 1914. Within months some of the players who had faced nothing more ferocious than a bustling centre forward would be experiencing the horrors of the Western
OLYMPIC swimmers Suki Brownsdon and Steve Mellor are joining 400 schoolchildren in bid to raise £200,000 at Darwen Leisure Centre. The sponsored swim next Wednesday at 10.30am aims to raise cash for the British Olympic squad's trip to Atlanta this summer
TODMORDEN is one of those places people tend to drive through when county-hopping. But the town, which received its charter as a borough 100 years ago, has a fascinating history which is well documented in a book just published Years of research have
TEN young dancers will tap their way through modern pop routines tomorrow as they join fund-raisers for Scanner Day. Their dances, choreographed by their teacher Roy Pemberton to music by Michael Jackson and Tina Turner, will be performed at various locations
THE family of a girl who was facing a heart transplant are urging people to carry donor cards. Rachel Howker was on holiday in Florida when a heart surgeon agreed to perform a pioneering heart operation, which meant there was no need for a transplant.
A MAJOR facelift has transformed a 150-year-old railway viaduct in Blackburn. The £105,000 project involved improving and strengthening Cob Wall viaduct with stone cleaning, re-pointing and the installation of new trackside railings. The scheme was a
ALAN Shearer today delivered the eve of Euro 96 message every Blackburn Rovers fan wanted to hear: "I'm going nowhere." In an exclusive interview, the England striker looked forward to a new season wearing the club's famous blue and white halves. Rumours
PLUMBING student David Cottam has won a prize after proving he is tops with taps! David, 53, of Garbett Street, Accrington, has been awarded £50 by the Plumb Center to mark his success on a plumbing training course at Accrington & Rossendale College
A WOMAN is hoping to put her psychology degree to good use in her new job. Ann-Marie Campbell has been appointed by East Lancashire Careers Service Staff Development Services to help firms increase their competitive position. Part of her work will involve
A PLAN to introduce parking charges in Nelson town centre was revealed. The seven central car parks were to be limited to two-and-a-half hour parking to make it easier for shoppers to find spaces and the charge was just 2p. The England football team were
PRINCE Charles touched down in East Lancashire to meet its people and its wildlife. The Prince was given a rousing welcome when he went for a 30 minute stroll around the Foxhill Bank Nature Reserve in Oswaldtwistle before flying off to another nature
A CAMPING trip to the arctic isn't what most people plan for a summer holiday but it is a dream come true for student Tom Doyle. Tom, 16, of Meadow Bottom, Todmorden, has been chosen as the youngest person to join a team of 80 researchers on a scientific
CEMFUEL has been given a clean bill of health by the Government - but a local MP says fears about the burning of hazardous waste in the Ribble Valley will not go away. In a long-awaited response to the report of the Environment Select Committee on the
A DISTRAUGHT grandmother has made an emotional appeal to her teenage granddaughter, missing from home for more than a month. Vanessa Hull, 15, has not been seen since she disappeared from a social services home on Whalley New Road, Blackburn, on May 1
AUSSIE ace James Peterson today warned his Barnoldswick team-mates to take nothing for granted when they face "whipping boys" Whalley at Victory Park tomorrow. The 23-year-old from Sydney has steered Barnoldswick into third spot in the Vaux Ribblesdale
A MAN was shot in the head and chest by a motorbike-riding attacker who opened fire with a handgun. John Smedley, 29, was injured after an argument with the gunman on Persia Street, Accrington, at around 6pm yesterday. Witnesses described seeing a man
COUN Reg Goggin (Letters, May 29) has been getting hot under the collar over a concerned council tax payer's opposition to the buying and flying of the Pakistani flag over Accrington town hall. He would serve the community better if he could find out
YOUR excellent article on the wartime role of Calderstones as a military hospital recalled for me the similar function - though not of such a vast scale - of the now-gone Isolation Hospital near Baxenden. My aunt, nurse Mary Shepherd, of the St John Ambulance
I HAVE just finished reading the funniest comments ever, those related to the "trashing" of an airliner, allegedly by members of the England soccer team. Firstly, take the view of the Players' Union official, Gordon Taylor, who said: "If it's drink then
THE TOP brass turned out to congratulate Blackburn Air Cadets' year of achievement. And for 16-year-old Cadet Anthony Farran it was a special occasion when he was presented with the Valley Memorial Trophy from Group Captain Bill Gambold, of RAF Linton
FORGET car shampoos. When John Wareing wants to clean his beloved truck he uses - hair shampoo. "Just get a good lather, rinse it off and leave it to dry. It works a treat," said 76-year-old John from Blackburn, who has passion for old lorries. The shampoo
PARENTS in East Lancashire whose children have been diagnosed as suffering from the rare Asperger's Syndrome have started a support group. The condition is a form of autism. Symptoms include communication difficulties, lack of imagination and clumsiness
BURNLEY player-chief Adrian Heath, pictured right, has tipped Euro' 96 outsiders Spain as dark horses for European championship glory. England kick-off the tournament against Switzerland at Wembley tomorrow. But Heath will have one eye on Elland Road
FROM the dreamy spires of Prague to the blood, sweat and tears of Irongate. A bigger contrast in venues and cultures you could not conceive. But last night Unibond League champions Bamber Bridge and a enthusiastic sell-out crowd of 2,300 fans proved the
