Nat Goodlad

Four North West postcodes—BL1 3PQ in Bolton, FY5 1ST in Blackpool, OL12 8AH in Whitworth and SK4 2NQ in Stockport—won £1,000 per valid ticket in the Postcode Lottery’s daily draw. The draw selected 20 winning postcodes across the UK, and the lottery says at least 33% of ticket sales supports charities and good causes, with more than £1.7 billion raised to date.

Residents of Cowm Park Way in Whitworth won £1,000 in a daily People's Postcode Lottery draw after the OL12 8AH postcode was selected. The lottery gives at least 33% of ticket income to charity and has provided more than £1.1 billion to charitable organisations and projects.

Residents in four North West postcode areas—Cumwhinton in Cumbria, Blackpool, Macclesfield and Great Sankey in Warrington—won £1,000 for each valid Postcode Lottery ticket in the August 19 daily draw. The winning postcodes were among 20 selected nationally, while the lottery says at least 33% of ticket sales supports charities and that players have raised more than £1.7 billion for good causes.

Ribble Valley Borough Council refused an application by Mr and Mrs Brelsford to remove the holiday-occupancy restriction from a property at Dewhurst Farm near Langho, which would have enabled it to become a permanent home. The applicants said the holiday-let business had operated at a loss, attracted little interest despite marketing, and was no longer commercially viable. Planners rejected the proposal, concluding that unrestricted residential use would create unjustified housing in an unsustainable countryside location where residents would depend on private cars, conflicting with local planning policies and the National Planning Policy Framework. A similar application was refused in 2024.

Lancashire Police are appealing for information to locate 17-year-old Layla, who was last seen at 1:15 p.m. on August 15 in Fishergate, Preston. She was wearing a yellow suit jacket, white top, green skirt and white trainers, and is known to have links to Leyland, Devon and Cornwall. Anyone with information is asked to call 999, quoting log 0732 of August 15.

Police are appealing for information to locate Deago, a 14-year-old boy last seen in Preston city centre at about 7:10 p.m. on Friday, August 14. He is described as approximately 4 feet 11 inches tall with a slight build and blonde, curly hair, and was wearing a black Nike Air tracksuit and dark Nike trainers. He is known to have links to Preston and Wolverhampton. Anyone with information is asked to call 999 and quote log number LC-20260814-1325.

Lancashire Police officer PC Hakeem Mahmood, 30, is due to appear at Burnley Crown Court alongside six other men over alleged drug-related offences. Mahmood faces charges of conspiring to supply a Class A controlled drug and corruptly or improperly exercising police powers, following an investigation directed by the Independent Office for Police Conduct and conducted by Lancashire Constabulary’s Anti-Corruption Unit. Waqar Khan is charged with conspiring to supply cocaine, while the other defendants are also due in court.

Lancashire Police officer PC Hakeem Mahmood is due to appear at Burnley Crown Court alongside six other men in connection with alleged drug supply and organized crime activity. Mahmood faces charges of conspiring to supply a Class A drug and corruptly or improperly exercising police powers, following an investigation directed by the Independent Office for Police Conduct and conducted by Lancashire Constabulary’s Anti-Corruption Unit. Waqar Khan is charged with conspiring to supply cocaine, while the remaining defendants are also due in court.

Sturon Thorne, 45, of Nelson, admitted stealing approximately £3,000 worth of jewellery from a home in Fleetwood on August 1, 2025. He was sentenced at Preston Magistrates' Court to 16 weeks in prison, ordered to pay £500 in compensation and given a one-year restraining order.

Garry Partridge, 63, of Clayton-le-Moors, was sentenced at Burnley Crown Court to four years in prison for raping a woman on Boxing Day 2020. A jury convicted him after a trial concluding on May 14. The court heard that he had been drinking and ignored the victim’s repeated refusal to have sex. The judge took account of a nearly four-year delay before court proceedings and Partridge’s osteoporosis, but imposed a sentence requiring him to serve at least two-thirds of the term. He was also placed under lifetime sex offender notification requirements.

Dean Lally, 23, of no fixed address, appeared at Burnley Crown Court facing allegations of arson, assault occasioning actual bodily harm, strangulation, controlling and coercive behaviour, and threats to damage property by fire. He was not arraigned after concerns were raised about his fitness to plead. A further case management hearing was scheduled for September 25, with a provisional four-day trial set for January 12, and Lally was remanded in custody.

Lancashire Police are seeking information about four men wanted in East Lancashire: Barry Duffy for affray, Adam Spinks for harassment, Mohammed Awan for assault, and Levi Cox on recall to prison. The men have links to Blackburn, Hyndburn, Preston, Burnley and Darwen. Information can be reported to police via 101 or online, or anonymously to Crimestoppers.

Blackburn Rovers FC has submitted plans for a covered 500-capacity spectator stand and four LED floodlights at its academy training centre in Brockhall Village. The development is intended to help the academy retain its Category One status under the Elite Player Performance Plan, which the club says is vital for developing young players and securing future revenue. The stand would use eight linked units, while the club says existing parking arrangements would remain and that measures would prevent light spill into nearby homes.

Marie Derbyshire, 47, of Burnley, received a 43-week prison sentence suspended for 12 months after admitting eight shop thefts, six assaults, harassment, threatening behaviour, threatening to damage property and breaching a Criminal Behaviour Order. She was ordered to compensate victims and retailers, and methadone was forfeited and ordered destroyed.

Burnley Bobcats swimmer Arthur Foran has been selected for the Lancashire county team competing at the National County Team Championships in October. After a successful season, he qualified for the Aquatics GB Next Gen Championships and Swim England Summer Nationals, where he finished second in his age group in the 100m breaststroke. He is also ranked among the country's top 10 in the 50m, 100m and 200m breaststroke, has broken several long-standing club records, and has been nominated for Swim England North West's Athlete of the Year award.

Violence and sexual offences in Blackburn with Darwen reached their highest first-half level in at least four years, with 3,650 offences recorded from January to June 2026, up 12.6% from the same period in 2025. Drug, public order, criminal damage, arson and weapons offences also increased, while anti-social behaviour, shoplifting and vehicle crime fell. Overall recorded crime declined mainly because anti-social behaviour reports dropped by more than half.

Plans have been submitted to convert the vacant basement unit at 3A Swan Courtyard in Clitheroe into Churchill's, a restaurant and bar operated alongside the Swan & Royal Hotel. The proposal includes internal refurbishment, a bar, seating and toilets, while retaining the basement's historic stone walls, columns and vaulted ceiling. Limited external changes are also planned within the Clitheroe Conservation Area, close to the Grade II-listed hotel. The applicant says the venue would diversify the hotel's income, create six full-time and six part-time jobs, and increase demand for local suppliers.

Graham Waggett, 64, of Padiham, received a four-month prison sentence suspended for 12 months after breaching a five-year sexual harm prevention order imposed following his conviction for sexual offences involving a child. Police found Snapchat and DuckDuckGo on a Samsung phone seized during a routine visit, contrary to the order's requirements. Waggett admitted the breaches and said he did not understand DuckDuckGo was prohibited, while his barrister described them as minor and non-deliberate contraventions. Judge Guy Mathieson called Waggett a disgrace and warned that any further breach would result in imprisonment. Waggett must also complete 200 hours of unpaid work.

Francis Heys, 28, of Blackburn, pleaded not guilty at Preston Crown Court to one charge of sexually assaulting a woman in Darwen in June 2024. He was released on bail pending a further case-management hearing on October 5, with a pre-trial review scheduled for November 26, 2027, and a three-day trial set for January 17, 2028.

Plans have been submitted to alter the Grade II-listed Chipping Congregational Church on Garstang Road. Proposed internal works include a new staircase, a partial first floor, a glazed viewing screen and secondary glazing, creating more space for children, worship and community activities without extending the building. A heritage assessment concludes that the changes would preserve the church’s historic fabric and would not harm the listed building or conservation area.

Charles Anderson, 48, of Nelson, was sentenced at Burnley Crown Court after downloading 1,017 indecent images of children, including 133 category A images, 195 category B images and 689 category C images. He was also convicted of possessing cannabis with intent to supply and producing cannabis. His two-year prison sentence was suspended for 18 months, and he was given a 10-year sexual harm prevention order, 10 years of sex-offender notification requirements, 30 rehabilitation days and 141 hours of unpaid work.

Seven motorists were sentenced at Blackburn Magistrates' Court for offences including drink-driving, dangerous driving, driving while disqualified, driving without insurance, and failing to stop after a collision. Penalties included driving bans, fines, unpaid work, rehabilitation requirements, compensation, and suspended prison sentences. Hayder Nawaz received a suspended 12-month prison sentence and a two-year driving disqualification for dangerous driving, while Shane Spencer received a suspended 32-week sentence. Several defendants were offered reductions to their driving bans for completing rehabilitation courses.

Zeeshan Bashir allowed his Blackburn home to be used to store 87 wraps of cocaine, weighing about 54.1 grams, along with £2,297 in cash. He initially denied possessing cocaine with intent to supply but pleaded guilty to allowing his premises to be used for drug activity. Preston Crown Court heard that the drugs had been stored for about a day, with limited financial gain and no active dealing. Despite Bashir’s previous drug convictions, Judge Kirsty-Ann Gunn imposed a two-year community order requiring 10 rehabilitation activity days and participation in the Building Choices programme.