Will Morgan

Blackburn with Darwen Council has unanimously approved the demolition of the former Kaleidoscope Youth Centre on Lindisfarne Avenue in Higher Croft, with work expected to begin as soon as possible. The centre closed in December 2025 after its SEND activities were moved to newer facilities. The council says the buildings are dilapidated and redundant, and plans include manual and mechanical demolition, security fencing, restricted working hours, highway-cleaning measures and nearby bat boxes. The cleared site could eventually be used for housing or another form of redevelopment as part of the wider Fishmoor Masterplan, with public consultation expected next year.

Blackburn with Darwen Council’s planning committee unanimously approved the final applications needed for the £13.5 million refurbishment of King George’s Hall. The approvals cover seven digital advertising boards and modern heating, ventilation, maintenance and extraction systems, including an external maintenance staircase. Although heritage advisers identified limited harm and additional visual clutter to the Grade II-listed building, they concluded that the public benefits—lower running costs, improved energy efficiency and long-term reuse—justified the changes. The venue is scheduled to reopen in September after almost two years of work, with The Ks due to perform at the first event.

A four-bedroom HMO on Peart Street in Burnley’s Queensgate ward has received retrospective approval through a Certificate of Lawful Development. Planning officers found evidence that the property had operated continuously as a four-bedroom HMO since 2020, before the Article Four Direction introduced in October 2024. The decision clarifies that Article Four controls do not make existing lawful HMOs unlawful; they require planning permission for future changes of use. Burnley Council is consulting on expanding HMO regulation to the remaining six wards not currently covered.

Burnley Council is consulting on extending Article Four planning controls for houses in multiple occupation to the six wards not covered by restrictions introduced in 2024: Briercliffe, Cliviger with Worsthorne, Coalclough with Deerplay, Hapton with Park, Lanehead, and Whittlefield with Ightenhill. The rules would not ban HMOs but would require landlords to obtain planning permission for conversions, allowing the council to manage their number and location. The executive approved a non-immediate order and consultation, with the new controls unlikely to take effect until September 2027. The council cited a small increase in HMOs outside the existing boundary and concerns about anti-social behaviour, crime and parking, while acknowledging that HMOs provide affordable, flexible accommodation for young and lower-income residents.

Blackburn with Darwen Council has approved a third application by A1 Tyres owner Mohammad Aslam to demolish the existing garage on Clarendon Road and build a low-profile tyre retailing and fitting workshop. The approved scheme excludes the previously proposed MOT facility and includes six off-street parking spaces, including one disabled bay. Earlier plans were rejected over residents’ concerns about parking, road safety, noise and smells, and an appeal was dismissed by the Planning Inspectorate. The approval includes conditions covering noise mitigation, construction management, contamination, operating hours and future site use.

Blackburn with Darwen Council has provided further details of plans to transform Blackburn Railway Station and develop new stations at Lower Darwen and Ewood. ARUP is preparing an outline business case and will assess improvements to the station’s appearance, concourse, public transport links and cycling infrastructure. The projects, including two new stops on the Colne-Skipton line, are expected to require £50 million to £100 million in central government funding. The work follows the devolution of transport-planning powers to the Lancashire Combined County Authority and is intended to support Blackburn town-centre regeneration and wider connectivity.

Blackburn with Darwen Council has approved a £128,000 ARUP contract to develop strategic business cases for new railway stations at Ewood and Lower Darwen, alongside redevelopment plans for Blackburn station. The projects could cost £50 million to £100 million and take five to 10 years, while a proposed Spring Vale station has been shelved because of costly infrastructure requirements. The business cases will eventually be submitted to the Department for Transport and HM Treasury for funding. The plans come amid capacity problems on East Lancashire routes, where more than one-fifth of Northern services have operated with fewer carriages than planned; Northern is seeking additional rolling stock and intends to replace about two-thirds of its fleet within 10 years.

Blackburn with Darwen is set to play a leading role in creating Pennine Lancashire, a new unitary authority that will replace the councils covering Blackburn with Darwen, Hyndburn, Rossendale, Pendle and Burnley. Blackburn with Darwen representatives will make up half of the transition joint committee, while chief executive Denise Park is expected to lead implementation alongside county council chief Mark Wynn. The new authority is due to begin operating in April 2028, following shadow-authority elections in May 2027, although the transition committee may have limited time to act because enabling legislation is not expected until early 2027. The reorganisation will reduce the number of councillors across the area from 216 to 95, including a cut in Blackburn with Darwen’s councillors from 51 to 27.

Reform UK’s Blackburn branch is offering members tickets costing up to £100 to dine with party chairman Lee Anderson or political commentator Matt Goodwin at a Lancashire event. Anderson’s table has sold out, while seats remain at Goodwin’s table. General admission costs £65 and includes a two-course meal, guest talks, music, a raffle and a drink. The October 24 event, restricted to Reform UK members, is expected to be held at the Dunkenhalgh Hotel in Clayton-le-Moors.

The Grade II-listed, Stonegate-owned Ram Inn in Cliviger has received Burnley Council approval to replace its children’s play area with a removable shipping-container bar, a covered seating area and a nine-foot timber pergola with lighting. Planners concluded the proposal would preserve the pub’s heritage setting and would not unacceptably affect neighbouring residents, subject to conditions on maintenance, removal when no longer needed and a ban on amplified music.

Keys to Independence CIC has submitted a new application to use a two-bedroom terraced house on Albert Street in Oswaldtwistle as assisted living accommodation for at least four people at risk of homelessness. Residents would have individual bedrooms and share communal facilities while receiving low-level support and medium- to long-term housing. The proposal seeks classification under planning use Class C3(b), which would avoid the need for a full change-of-use application under Hyndburn Council’s Article 4 restrictions on houses in multiple occupation. The scheme follows an earlier rejected proposal for domestic-abuse survivors; internal alterations would create four bedrooms and shared living space, with no external changes planned.

Burnley Council has approved Burnley FC’s plans to build a new vomitory at Turf Moor, providing improved access to the 4,500-capacity Barnfield stand and serving as a fire escape. The black metal structure with claret-red interior detailing will require the loss of four seats and will be partly concealed by the stadium boundary fence. Construction cannot begin until borehole investigations assess the stability risks posed by an underlying coal seam.