DARWEN NEWS by Darwen Online

Web giant Google has now extended its Street View to include areas of Darwen!

Internet users can now view panoramic images of local houses, pubs & shops etc from a ground level perspective.

Street View launched under some criticism although they've been allowed to go ahead despite some security concerns reported by worried individuals. To protect people's privacy car number plates and faces have been blurred and they also offer a 'report a problem' area if you see anything inappropriate.

Previously, only the larger towns and cities were able to zoom into Street View level but Darwen has recently been added following mapping by the special Google car during the back end of last Summer.

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Shares in Darwen based smart meter supplier Bglobal responded well to recent contract wins.

The share price, which was just 10p at the start of last summer, had slipped 10p from the highs of 55p at the start of the year.

However, since announcing news of the contract wins, one of which will see its energy 'smart meters' installed into 23,000 schools, it is hoped the share price will once again start moving in the right direction as its installation programme recovers from disruption caused by the freezing weather.

The cold spells during the winter meant engineers struggled to visit homes, schools and businesses but the company, which employs 100 people, is pleased to announce the bullish trading update.

Along with the contract to supply schools, Bglobal also struck a deal with Npower to supply its business customers with smart meter devices.

The 'smart meters' allow owners to monitor energy usage in the home, school or workplace.

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Jake Berry has today slammed the current Labour MP for Rossendale and Darwen as a hypocrite, following revelations uncovered in a letter from Gordon Brown’s MP that was passed to Jake by a concerned local resident.

In the letter Ms Anderson confirms her expenses as “appearing excessive”, what she fails to mention is that the letter, sent on House of Commons taxpayer funded notepaper, may itself be in contravention of the expense rules.

Jake commented “The letter is a blatant piece of electioneering sent at the taxpayer’s expense as a last gasp attempt to try and justify 13 years of failure by Gordon Brown’s Labour Party. It is unbelievable to think that this letter admitting excessive expenses claims may itself be another abuse of the expenses system.”

“Last week Ms Anderson branded the new Darwen Leisure Centre as “hideous” yet now she takes the credit for building it. Six months ago Ms Anderson called for a leadership election to replace Gordon Brown, yet now she praises him in a last ditch attempt to save her job.”

“Stop treating the people of Rossendale and Darwen like fools. It’s time for change, and that change can’t come soon enough.”

Mr Berry confirmed that he has passed this letter to the relevant authorities for investigation.

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Community groups are now able to brighten up the borough with free paint from the Blackburn with Darwen Council’s paint donation scheme.

The paint is available following a donation of “waste” paint from local paint manufacturer Crown Paints, based in Darwen.

The paint donation scheme is aimed at raising awareness of the potential re-use of “rubbish” and at the same time supporting local organisations.

All local groups can register for free paint by contacting the Council’s cleansing line on (01254) 585863/866

The paint will be given out to those who have registered during two sessions at the Council’s regeneration and environment department at Davyfield Road.

These will take place on Thursday March 11 (4.30 - 5.30pm) and Saturday March 13 (9.30-11am)

Councillor Alan Cottam, executive member of regeneration and environment, said: “One person’s rubbish can be another person’s treasure. Crown have kindly donated this paint which has come through their Testing Laboratory to the Council so we can pass it on to community groups who need it.

“This is recycling at its very best. Paint can also be a health and environmental hazard when it is thrown away and many organisations are desperate for it so everyone benefits.”

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The Met Office has decided to scrap its seasonal weather forecasts after coming under criticism for failing to predict the UK's coldest winter for decades.

This comes following false hopes of a "BBQ Summer" last year which turned out to be very wet and cool!

In a bid to restore faith the Met Office will now be issuing 30 day forecasts which they claim will be more useful to the public anyway after admitting that seasonal forecasts can never be as accurate as short-term forecasts.

If you want to check the weather forecast for Darwen over the next 14 days please visit metcheck.com

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Almost 60 staff have left Blackburn with Darwen Council after being offered early retirement. Full story

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Homeowners in Bank Street, in the St Peters conservation area in Darwen, are the latest to benefit from refurbishment work.

Since 2004, the Housing Market Renewal (HMR) programme will have funded refurbishments to 279 properties in the Darwen area.

The work undertaken by Blackburn with Darwen Council includes the cleaning and pointing of the front elevations of the properties, rain water gutters and pipes as well as installation of new front gates, railings, sash windows and hard wood doors were necessary.

The work funded through HMR is aimed at improving the appearance of properties, thereby helping to inspire confidence in the area with the aim of regenerating and boosting the local housing market.

The property refurbishments on Bank Street are to the National Heritage standard, which is a standard that uses design details and materials which are either the same as the original or appropriate to the historic character of the area.

Councillor Salim Lorgat, executive member for housing, said, “This improvement work is excellent news in terms of conserving the borough’s heritage. We will continue to work with local residents to improve the quality of housing in Darwen.

”We can already see how housing market renewal funding is making a real difference to our communities and housing through the work we have undertaken over the last five years, but we still have to continue to work on making Blackburn with Darwen a better to place to live.”

Blackburn with Darwen Borough Council has received £12 million this year, from Regenerate Pennine Lancashire (formerly Elevate) which is one of the HMR pathfinders created by the government to manage the multi-million pound Housing Market Renewal Programme for Pennine Lancashire.

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Many houses in Darwen still can't receive many of the digital freeview channels 4 months on from the local 'switchover'.

People have complained to Darwen Online that they aren't able to receive their favourite television programmes without spending money upgrading their aerials, despite having digital ready televisions.

However, their are alternatives available such as:

Freesat - you can opt to receive Freesat through a satellite dish. It would mean having the installation done and new aerials leading to your television sets but it would mean you have access to lots of freeview channels.

Online - there are various 'on demand' websites such as 4OD and BBC iPlayer which you can watch on your TV if you have the right equipment with Internet access.

This doesn't HAVE to be your PC or laptop either - games consoles which are already connected to your television may be able to access some on demand services:

Such as the Nintendo Wii which can access the BBC iPlayer or Playstation 3 which has it's own web browser or the Xbox 360 which can access Sky Player.

Alternatively some web-enabled mobile devices can also stream on demand TV shows such as the iPhone.

So, which websites should you visit to watch online?

TV Catchup
SeeSaw
Sky Player
BBC iPlayer
ITV Player
40D
Demand Five

If you can think of any website which should be listed please comment below and we'll add them to the list!

Of course, there are also various 'subscription' services such as Sky or Virgin Media etc which can provide the freeview channels as part of their packages but we are most often asked about free or one-off payment alternatives.

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Google Zooms in on Darwen Streets with Street View

Bglobal shares on the way up?

Jake Berry accuses MP of hypocrisy

'Brighten up' the borough with free paint

Met Office Scrapping Seasonal Weather Forecasts

Almost 60 staff take early retirement at Blackburn with Darwen Council

Refurbishment work in Darwen conservation area continues

Alternatives to Digital Freeview in Darwen

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