Central Radio News

Plans have been unveiled for an ambitious new lighting scheme in Blackpool town centre including a possible canopy over one pedestrian area.

Preston’s new cinema and leisure complex will become “a great centre to the city”, according to Wallace and Gromit creator Nick Park.

A Pendle councillor has resigned after it was revealed he owed thousands of pounds in council tax and had missed meetings.

Blackpool’s biggest fundraiser supporting young homeless people in the resort is set to take place again this April in St John’s Square.

Around a thousand job opportunities will be available as the Winter Gardens hosts a job fair with more than 100 local employers taking part.

Illegal vapes and tobacco products with a value in the region of £5,000 have been seized from two Rossendale shops.

A counterfeiter who made almost £47,000 selling fake car and van service books online has been ordered to hand over his ill-gotten gains following action by Lancashire Trading Standards officers.

The second stage of a scheme to replace traffic lights at key junctions in Preston is set to begin next week.

Queen Street Mill in Burnley has secured a sizeable slice of funding from Arts Council England to upgrade museums to protect their heritage and support the local economy.

Police are appealing for information and footage after an elderly woman suffered serious injuries following a collision.

Blackpool is set to become the UK’s comedy capital once again as the Blackpool Comedy Festival returns later this year.

Police are reminding the public that a police officer will never ask you to withdraw money to assist with a criminal investigation following three attempted courier frauds in East Lancashire this week.

Four former Wyre councillors who between them put in decades of service have been made honorary aldermen.

Plans for a crazy golf course have attracted strong support with around 180 comments and letters supporting the scheme so far.

Part of one of Preston’s oldest pubs will be demolished, while its historic frontage will be given a facelift after plans to preserve the historic building were given the green light.

The body that will assess controversial plans for a windfarm off the Fylde coast has demanded more details about the impact the development could have on residents and the environment.

A host of improvements to boost sustainable travel and increase connectivity by rail to Manchester and Preston and elsewhere in the region could be in the pipeline for five train stations in and around Chorley.

A man who subjected women and girls to a catalogue of horrific assaults and sexual violence has been sentenced to 30 years.

Police are appealing to identify a potential witness after a man died following a collision in Blackpool.

The Honorary Freeman of Preston Nick Park CBE, multi-award winning filmmaker and Preston-born creator of the animated, loveable heroes Wallace & Gromit, will be visiting his hometown to officially open the city’s £45m+ Animate entertainment and leisure destination. 

A pioneering cricketer and a suffragette are among the ideas for people who might be highlighted in a new walking trail exploring Nelson’s history.

A series of digital display screens could be set to light up across Preston city centre – complete with a lifesaving piece of kit.

Lancashire County Council is planning to raise council tax by 4.99 percent at its budget next week.

A man has been arrested after a fatal collision in Blackpool last week.

A man suffered serious injuries after a van collided with pedestrians in Poulton-le-Fylde over the weekend.

Police have charged a man following the death of a 57-year-old man in June last year.

Officers have seized three off-road bikes and a quad bike which were being driven in an anti-social manner.

Preston’s new youth zone is planning to offer 40 hours of activities a week when it opens later this year, the Local Democracy Reporting Service (LDRS) understands.

Chorley’s annual literary event, 'What’s your story, Chorley?' is back across Chorley Town Centre next month.

A prolific caller from Blackburn who repeatedly contacted Lancashire Police has been jailed.

The compulsory purchase order giving Blackpool Council power to clear the site needed for the £65m multiversity has now been published.

Plans for a golf academy and 50 flats in Darwen have been ditched by senior councillors in favour of using the £2.5million of town deal cash earmarked for the projects on the regeneration of its market hall and civic quarter.

The world-renowned Blackpool Dance Festival has been awarded the prestigious 'Large Event of the Year' at this week's Lancashire Tourism Awards, further cementing its position as one of the region's most significant cultural and economic contributors.

Two men who were involved in an attack on a man in his own home, have been given sentences totalling 30 years.

A further five people have been sent to prison for their involvement in a Preston cocaine supply gang which was uncovered by Lancashire Police.

Trading Standards raided two premises in a joint operation with Blackburn and Darwen Police recently, in a bid to tackle the sale of any illicit vapes in the borough.

New diversion routes have been agreed and put in place in East Lancashire following the partial collapse of a road in Oswaldtwistle.

The great Astley Hall in Chorley celebrated 100 years of being open to the public last year by inviting people to share their memories and stories.

Travellers at an unauthorised encampment on grassland in Darwen have been given 11 months to clear the site unless their backdated planning application to develop it is passed.

Preston City Council is launching a night service for rough sleepers in the city.

Police are appealing for information after a man died following a collision in Blackpool.

A massive 186,000 tonnes of rock will be used to save a Blackpool beach from the threat of coastal erosion.

Mark Wynn has been selected as the new chief executive of Lancashire County Council.

Details have been revealed of the design of a new primary school set to be built on the outskirts of Preston.

Global superstar DJ Pete Tong, and one of the UKs biggest bands of the 90s, Embrace, are to headline this year’s ‘Preston Weekender’.

Thousands of pounds worth of goods have been stolen from a house in Blackpool.

The construction of the highly anticipated Farington cricket facility in Lancashire has reached a significant milestone, with steel work for the new pavilion now underway.

A new Homelessness Prevention Forum is to be established in Blackburn with Darwen borough.

Chorley Council is considering whether to change how often it empties residents’ bins.

The drive to make Blackburn with Darwen into a creative hub has been boosted by a £760,000 grant from the Arts Council England.

The boss of the trust that runs Chorley and South Ribble Hospital has said the closure of one of its wards is among the “real-world impacts” of the financial difficulties facing the organisation.

Lancashire Police have charged three people after a taxi driver was attacked in Buckshaw Village.

Fylde Council has announced a refurbishment project for the Kirkham Market Square public toilets, bringing much-needed updates to the facility.

A man has died following a collision in Earby, Barnoldswick this week.

A scheme to transform a former Pizza Hut outlet on Cleveleys seafront into a cafe with padel tennis courts to the rear is now awaiting progress after the application was approved by planners.

Work to demolish Blackpool’s former Bonny Street police station and magistrates court is now underway and is due to be completed by July.

Fears have been raised residents could have left their homes ‘for no reason’ if a proposed new spectator stand is not built at Blackpool Football Club’s Bloomfield Road stadium.

Prime Minister, Sir Keir Starmer, was in Preston today, as he made a pledge over the future of nuclear power in the UK.

Motorists are being warned of up to 12 weeks of disruption at a major Blackpool junction which is being redesigned to cut congestion.

Residents of Burnley borough are set to see their council tax rise by two per cent next year – below the maximum three allowed by the government without a referendum.

A Blackpool dad has told how his family is forced to sleep overnight in a camper van to escape rowdy holidaymakers staying in a resort short term holiday let.

Blackpool Council is hoping to work with the Home Office to resolve concerns around the use of the Metropole Hotel on the Promenade to house asylum seekers.

The final phase of Harris Your Place, a £16 million initiative aimed at restoring and reimagining The Harris Museum, Art Gallery and Library has begun, marking a significant milestone for the project and setting the stage for a 2025 reopening.

A man remains in a serious condition in hospital after a collision on the M6 near Preston this week.

A large quantity of illicit tobacco products has been seized during an operation carried out by the Rossendale Neighbourhood Policing Team and Trading Standards.

Preston City Council has re-signed The Armed Forces Covenant.

Fylde Council say the Visitor Centre at Fairhaven Lake will remain open after the RSBP formally gave notice they were moving out of the site.

Police are appealing for information after a collision in Colne left a teenager with serious injuries.

A mothballed adventure course in Blackpool has cost council tax payers £390,000 it has emerged – with one councillor branding the spending as ‘shocking’.

Thousands of knives were seized from a stall in Blackpool as part of action to crack down on violent crime in the town.

Work on the creation of a new £100,000 pump track in a town in a rural East Lancashire borough is set to start this week.

The access to a historic nature reserve in Accrington has been upgraded.

Preston will not lose any of the £20m it was awarded in ‘levelling up’ cash – in spite of changing how it plans to spend it.

The enchanting WinterBloom Light Festival is back for 2025 after Colne BID successfully won their Arts Council bid for another year.

A man who travelled by taxi from Yorkshire to Lancashire where he attempted to break into houses in Chorley, has been jailed. 

Councillors are set to approve plans which will create extra school places in Lancashire for children and young people with special educational needs and disabilities.

Blackpool South MP Chris Webb has renewed calls for the Metropole Hotel to be closed to asylum seekers – claiming its residents have suffered ill-treatment.

It will be May at the earliest before all of the outlets signed up for Preston’s new cinema and leisure complex are open.

A cheap peak-time bus fare for disabled passengers is set to be scrapped across much of Lancashire – along with free bus passes for some of the county’s young people.

A drug dealer who was caught with a suitcase full of cannabis has been jailed.

A local transport operator in East Lancashire has stepped forward to save a vital hospital shuttle bus from closure following huge public reaction and protests to save the service for local people.

Work is set to begin this summer to build Blackpool’s £65m multiversity after a planning inspector gave the go ahead for the council to buy up the rest of the site.

National Highways is to conduct a safety review of the M65 from Cuerden to Burnley this year including whether lighting is needed.

Fylde Council has approved plans to acquire Kirkham Pool from the YMCA for a nominal sum of £1.

A man has died in hospital following a collision in Catterall last week.

An investigation is underway after the death of a man in Colne.

A man has been given a three-year football banning order after racially abusing a Blackburn Rovers player during the East Lancashire Derby in August.

The Fylde Ice Festival is back for its third year, bringing a spectacular array of ice sculptures and family fun to St Annes.

A storeroom at a thriving Blackburn performance venue has been earmarked as a new dance studio and rehearsal room.

Details have been revealed about how Preston’s distinctive row of red phone boxes will be kept in pristine condition once the booths return to their city centre home this spring.

A man has been jailed for five and a half years for attacking a woman with a metal bar in Blackburn.

Blackpool Council is set to cut £8.6m from its budget in the coming financial year with council tax bills expected to go up by five per cent.

Grants totalling more than £100,000 have been handed out by Blackpool Council to support community programmes at the town’s Grand Theatre.

Lancashire County Council has finalised an agreement to continue using Altham’s Hill Tip until March 31 next year – giving four councils in the east of the county 12 months extra breathing space to sort out the disposal of their waste to landfill.

The award-winning St Annes Kite Festival is set to take place from midday on Friday 29 August to Sunday 31 August.

Residents in Chorley are being asked for their views on budget proposals ahead of a full council meeting in March, where the final budget will be considered.   

Work on a flagship housing estate in Blackburn is scheduled to resume after two years.

Blackpool Council has given its approval to enter into a £8m grant funding agreement with a company who will explore the viability of citing a hotel at the listed former Abingdon Street Post Office.

Seven members of a drugs gang who were involved in transporting cocaine into Preston and then distributing it, have been given prison sentences totalling nearly 50 years. 

The former Wilko store on Preston’s Deepdale Shopping Park is being readied for reopening – but as what remains a mystery.

Police are appealing for information after a collision left a cyclist with life threatening injuries.

The cost of Lancashire police to households is set to rise by the maximum permitted 5.31 per cent from April 1.

New figures about disturbances and crime around Whalley’s night-time bar and club scene show the need for a special licensing system to be extended for another three years, Ribble Valley councillors are being advised.

A “significant” amount of extra money will have to be invested in the upkeep of the Royal Preston Hospital now that its replacement is well over a decade away.

Wyre Council wants to stop granting permission for new houses on land found to have heightened levels of a cancer-causing chemical – until more is known about the exact risk it poses.

A 300-year-old East Lancashire building turned community centre is celebrating the opening of a £127,000 new extension.

A new innovation hub to boost collaboration in key sectors has been announced by Lancashire County Council.

A man who groomed a 13-year-old girl before going onto sexually assault and rape her has been jailed.

Blackpool is bidding for £750,000 to boost its cultural offer with some of the cash potentially being used to launch new events if the application is successful.

A major engagement exercise to get the public’s thoughts on the proposed sites for new hospitals in Preston and Lancaster has been indefinitely postponed after the projects were pushed back to the late 2030s.

Expect wind speeds of up to 90mph across Lancashire as Storm Eowyn approaches.

Hopes of converting Blackpool’s former Odeon Cinema into a family entertainment centre appear to have been revived with the owners now seeking a leisure operator for the site.

A Blackburn man has been handed a lengthy jail sentence after violently attacking a man with a hammer.

Wyre Council has lodged objections to controversial proposals to develop a sand and gravel quarry next to houses in the village of Preesall.

Building work on planned new hospitals for Preston and Lancaster will not now begin until the second half of the 2030s – the point by which the facilities had previously been expected to open.

A rogue roofer who scammed a couple out of £1,300 for 'make believe' roof repairs has been jailed for three years and three months following action by Trading Standards officers.

Police are appealing for witnesses and footage following a fatal collision in Chorley.

Preston’s new cinema and leisure development, “Animate”, will officially launch on 5th February when the first venue throws open its doors.

Police are investigating after a cannabis grow was found in Preston.

Anyone feeling vulnerable or scared on a night out in Blackpool will be able to seek help at a new safe haven which has been launched in the town centre.

Accrington’s King George V Playing Fields will be back in use by September next year.

Police have recovered £28 million worth of assets from a gang of international bitcoin fraudsters.

Police have arrested four people as enquiries continue after a missing man from Darwen was found dead.

Police are appealing for witnesses and dashcam footage after a man died in a collision in Burnley.

Police have charged four people following a high value theft from a shop in Preston.

Controversial plans to build a third jail on the border of Chorley and Leyland could end up being decided in the High Court after campaigners launched a legal bid to block the project.

Rawtenstall is undergoing some major changes including phased town centre roadworks aiming to improve traffic flow.

Police have charged a woman with murder after a body was sadly found inside a flat in Church.

More cameras could be added to Blackpool’s CCTV system following a £2m investment which saw a new control centre open nearly two years ago.

A man has been jailed for assaulting and coercive controlling a Fleetwood mum who went on to take her own life.

Police have launched a murder investigation after a woman’s body was found inside a property in Church.

Singer Linda Nolan, who rose to fame alongside her sisters in The Nolans, has died after two decades years of battling cancer.

A former employee from Nelson has been sentenced after she logged into a firm's computer system and deleted business-critical data.

Plans to build a new ‘first class’ M&S store at Norcross offering ‘6,600 product lines’ have been lodged with planners at Wyre.

A man found dead in Rivington has been identified after a year-long investigation.

Work to create a tram museum in Blackpool is continuing with volunteers hoping to submit a bid for National Lottery funding to support the vision to preserve the resort’s heritage fleet.

Members of the public are being invited to have their say on the proposed site for a new hospital for Preston.

A former teacher will appear in court next month as part of an investigation into alleged historic sexual offences in Fleetwood.

Plans that could transform Blackburn’s already super successful Making Rooms into the leading makerspace in the whole of the UK have been revealed.

A man has died following a collision on the M6 in Lancashire yesterday afternoon.

A man has been jailed for trying to steal from two people in Accrington in the space of a few minutes.

Parents who have yet to apply for a primary school place starting this September in Lancashire are being reminded that the deadline for applications falls on Wednesday 15 January.

The government may have to make the final call on plans for a major overhaul of a Preston park after an objection from Sports England.

Lancashire’s elected Police and Crime Commissioner has commented on traffic patrols, road safety and action against danger-drivers following recent incidents and debates about the M65, where a number of fatal incidents have happened.

It has played host to The Beatles, legendary clown Charlie Cairoli and a host of dances and election counts – and this year Fleetwood’s Marine Hall turns 90.

Volunteers who are battling to restore a famous Blackpool landmark are appealing for more people to join their ranks.

Plans to move Rawtenstall Market traders to a temporary town centre site while the indoor market hall and surrounds are redeveloped have been approved by Rossendale Council’s cabinet.

Highways bosses are poised to spend up to £6m on plans for a radical revamp of one of the most congested roads in Central Lancashire – in spite of there being no guarantee of the government funding also needed to make them a reality.

The rules for disabled parking at Chorley and Preston hospitals are so confusing and unhelpful that blue badge-holders are either getting fined or paying unnecessarily for their stay.

Work on the construction of the controversial Wilson Sports Village in Clayton-Le-Moors will start again later this month.

More than one in 10 patients is facing a wait of at least 24 hours in A&E as winter pressures pile up at Blackpool Victoria Hospital.

Lancashire Police arrested 331 people for drink or drug driving related offences in December 2024, 24% more than last year.

Preston’s long-awaited cinema, restaurant and leisure complex will open in phases from the middle of February, the Local Democracy Reporting Service (LDRS) can reveal.

Improved lighting and greening up of parts of the town centre are among the schemes funded by £1.5m of government cash.

A carcinogenic substance has been found in gardens and allotments close to the grounds of a former chemical plant in Thornton Cleveleys.

Blackpool South MP Chris Webb has set his own party a challenge – declaring “It’s about time UK Labour came back to Blackpool’.

Fylde Council has announced the launch of a transformative initiative to install new bus shelters across St Annes.

A backdated planning application has been submitted for a controversial ‘unlawful’ travellers’ encampment currently occupying grassland near the Darwen’s Whitehall Park.

Police would like to speak to a man in connection with a report of a theft of a collection box from a McDonalds in Chorley.

A £30million drive to tackle congestion at one of the key gateway junctions into Blackburn and Darwen will start in July.

Police are appealing for information after a woman suffered serious injuries following a collision in St Annes.

Blackpool needs a large events arena to compete with rival towns and cities on the entertainment circuit, a former councillor who played guitar with some of the biggest stars of the 1970s has warned.

iMEP have announced that the 2025 iMEP Music Festival will take place over two days at Accrington Cricket Club’s iMEP Arena on Friday 19th and Saturday 20th September.

Lancashire County Council's gritting crews are preparing to put some brand-new snow-clearing kit to the test as they get ready to tackle the severe weather predicted for this weekend.

New research has found that over a quarter of surveyed firefighters who attended the Grenfell Tower fire are now suffering from long-term health disorders.

A fresh appeal has gone out for more people to come forward to act as foster carers in Blackpool with the resort still having more than 500 children living in council care.

The number of children excluded from school in Lancashire has more than doubled over the last five years – far outstripping the rate at which exclusions have increased nationally.

Half of the new homes planned as part of a major expansion of Preston have now been completed.

A ban on drinking, using drugs, urinating and defecating in public and begging is being brought in for Darwen town centre.

It’s the East Lancashire football derby this weekend, and Lancashire Police, Blackburn Rovers and Burnley Football Clubs are urging supporters to enjoy the day without letting passions spill over.

Work is due to begin early in the new year on a new passenger handling facility at Blackpool Airport as part of major investment in the air hub in 2025.

Blackpool’s Tory opposition leader has warned of council tax rises and cuts to services despite a £17m funding boost for town hall spending next year.

BAE Systems is celebrating two new deals to buy Eurofighter Typhoon jets which secure thousands of jobs at the firm’s Lancashire military aircraft factories.

A Rossendale off-licence shop has had its premises licence revoked after selling alcohol to youngsters under 18, which was linked to town centre trouble including planned fights and anti-social behaviour at a Rawtenstall Market ‘Foodie Fridays’ event.

A number of figures across Lancashire have been recognised in the 2025 King’s New Year Honours List.

Blackpool’s Winter Gardens conference centre is bringing a multi million pound boost in business tourism to the town.

Work on controversial plans for a new bus lane on one of the busiest roads in Preston is set to begin later this week.

2025 is set to be a big year for Preston – with a raft of long-running regeneration projects set to come to a conclusion and several other schemes poised to get under way.

Emergency work is needed to re-install and test high-voltage power cable that was stolen by thieves ahead of a major project milestone.

Police have launched a murder investigation after a man was fatally struck by a car in Blackburn.

Plans to use cameras to catch drivers making illegal manoeuvres on Lancashire’s roads have yet to be implemented – almost two years since they were given the green light.    

Loud music and barking dogs were the leading causes of noise complaint made by Preston residents about their neighbours this year.

A man has been jailed for stealing designer clothing from a store in Preston.

A man has been charged after a woman died following a collision in Nelson.

Blackpool’s ambitious regeneration programme is set to make more progress in 2025 with the resort poised for hundreds of millions of pounds of investment.

Work on a £7.5m scheme to transform a historic Blackpool building into a modern hub for small businesses is on track to be completed by next spring.

Blackpool’s £350m Talbot Gateway will see a number of key milestones reached in 2025 as the next phases of development make progress.

More than £600,000 has been added to the amount generated in fines by a bus-only zone in Preston in the space of just two months.

A charity which supports young homeless people in Blackpool has seen a rise in demand for its services this year and is warning of a funding ‘cliff edge’.

Part of Blackpool town centre will be closed to traffic to enable the resort to literally lay down the red carpet for visiting celebrities next month.

A £1.7m new youth centre in Blackpool is on track to launch in the spring after the building work was completed two months ahead of schedule.

Almost 50 bedrooms are to be added to a Preston hotel near the M6 after city planners gave the green light to a revamp of the facility.

The Fleetwood to Knott End ferry service will be out of action until February due to a fault with the vessel.

Following recent incidents at St Joseph’s Orphanage and 131 Church Street, which caused much disruption within Preston and the wider community, the Council has set up a dedicated Task Force to address empty and derelict buildings and the growing concerns around safety.

Burnley is celebrating a remarkable year of growth and development as a host of new businesses have chosen to open their doors in the town centre, marking a significant step forward in the vision to make Burnley a destination of choice for residents, visitors, and businesses alike.

Blackpool is preparing to bring the curtain down on 2024 with a spectacular New Year’s Eve party on the Prom.

Plans have been lodged to build a new motorway service station in Preston.

Lancashire County Council has unveiled plans for new bus links in Preston, Chorley and South Ribble as part of a shake-up of services from Spring 2025.

The first stage of vital works that aim to relieve congestion and improve traffic flow in Rawtenstall have been completed ahead of the Christmas holidays.