The European Regional Development Fund ( ERDF ) is one of the European Structural and Investment Funds allocated by the European Union . Its purpose is to transfer money from richer regions (not countries), and invest it in the infrastructure and services of underdeveloped regions. This will allow those regions to start attracting private sector investments, and create jobs on their own.
59-465: Little Harwood is a suburb of Blackburn in the Blackburn with Darwen district, in the ceremonial county of Lancashire , England, situated at the northern edge of the town. Located within the ward are areas of mixed housing, industrial units and open land, including Blackburn Cemetery . Little Harwood is a multi-cultural place and there are many mosques and churches in the suburb to cater for
118-410: A budget of 1.4 billion units of account , much less than the original British proposal of 2.4 billion units of account, but has increased rapidly both proportionally and absolutely in the course of time. Since its creation, it has operated under changing set of rules that were standardised with Single European Act and is now in its 2014–2020 period. As part of its task to promote regional development,
177-616: A campaign using pub meetings and leafleting. Robin Evans resigned from the party in October 2003. At 53°44′41″N 2°28′37″W / 53.74472°N 2.47694°W / 53.74472; -2.47694 (53.7449°, −2.4769°), and 184 mi (296 km) north-northwest of London, Blackburn stands 122 metres (401 ft) above sea level, 9 mi (14 km) east of Preston and 21 mi (34 km) north-northeast of Manchester . The Ribble Valley and West Pennine Moors lie to
236-598: A combination of the River Blakewater , and an Old English word "burn", meaning stream. Local author William Abram, in his 1877 history of the town and parish, cited the ancient name as Blake Burne . Abram also confirms that the region, later known as the Blackburn Hundred , was known as Blakeburneshyre . Blackburn was recorded in Domesday Book (1086) as Blacheburne and Blacheburn . By
295-646: A factory founded in Blackburn in 1860 that was facing closure. The following year he launched the Blackburn-based clothing brand Community Clothing to boost employment in British mills and factories. The inaugural British Textile Biennial, a month-long festival celebrating textiles through art and exhibitions, was held in Blackburn in 2019. The second edition took place in October 2021, and included an exhibition from Turner Prize winner Lubaina Himid and
354-436: A film starring Maxine Peake . In 2021, the Blackburn with Darwen Council proposed a £250m "Blackburn Master Plan" to revitalise central Blackburn over the next decade, with the goal of building 500 new homes and creating 1,000 jobs. In 2022, £200m in government, council, and private investments were announced for the revitalisations of the town centres in both Blackburn and Darwen. The Townscape Heritage Project will create
413-655: A meeting place for local Asians involved in organised crime. The next resurgence of support for the far right came in 2002; The incumbent Liberal Democrats were pushed into third place behind Labour . Commenting on the elections, Blackburn MP Jack Straw said: "It is very sad. We had the far right in Blackburn 26 years ago when they won two seats in Shadsworth. But there the whole community decided they wouldn't have it. You can never say they won't put candidates in Blackburn but we will work hard on community relations." The council until prior to 2008 had two members for
472-523: A mob arrived in Blackburn after attacking power looms in Accrington . Proceeding to Bannister Eccles' Jubilee Factory on Jubilee Street, the mob destroyed 212 power looms in the space of 35 minutes. They then turned their attention to John Houghton and Sons' Park Place factory, located nearby, and destroyed another 25 looms, before seeking more machinery to attack. The crowd began to disperse at around 6:00 pm, troops having arrived at 3:30 pm to try to quell
531-566: A new cultural quarter in Blackburn's historic town centre. Councillor Phil Riley stated that additional investment over the next decade could lead to 100,000 jobs in the borough. Blackburn is administered by Blackburn with Darwen unitary authority , which encompasses Blackburn and the small town of Darwen to the south. The town sends one Member of Parliament (MP) to the House of Commons . The council has been elected "by thirds" since 1996 In its 2007 Comprehensive Performance Assessment (CPA),
590-577: A paper on the Roman Roads of the Wigan district, speaks of a road of this kind which branched off eastward from Blackrod, "Street-fold and Water-street, near Rivington, and by White Hough, in Tockholes, to the small Roman station at Blackburn, near the new road to Preston." All Hallows Spring was excavated by Antiquarians in 1654 and found to contain an inscribed stone commemorating the dedication of
649-533: A quarter of the town's looms lay idle. During the First World War suspension of trade with India resulted in the expansion of colonial British India's cotton industry at the expense of Britain's, and the imposition of an 11 per cent import tariff by the colonial British Government led to a dramatic slump in trade in 1921, a situation which worsened in 1922 after the Indian Government raised
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#1732801188366708-568: A temple to Serapis by Claudius Hieronymus, legate of Legio VI Victrix . Christianity is believed to have come to Blackburn by the end of the 6th century, in either 596 (as there is a record of a "church of Blagbourne" in that year) or 598 AD. The town was important during the Anglo-Saxon era when the Blackburnshire Hundred came into existence as a territorial division of the kingdom of Northumbria . The name of
767-602: Is an industrial town and the administrative centre of the Blackburn with Darwen borough in Lancashire , England. The town is north of the West Pennine Moors on the southern edge of the Ribble Valley , 8 mi (13 km) east of Preston and 21 mi (34 km) north-northwest of Manchester . Blackburn is the core centre of the wider unitary authority area along with the town of Darwen . It
826-409: Is bounded on other sides by the towns of Accrington to the east and Darwen to the south. The village of Wilpshire is 2 + 1 ⁄ 2 mi (4 km) north of Blackburn, and is partly contiguous (development-touching) however in the Ribble Valley local government district. Other nearby villages are Langho , approximately 1 + 1 ⁄ 4 mi (2 km) northeast, and Mellor to
885-523: Is located where a Roman military road crossed the river Blakewater. The road linked Bremetennacum Veteranorum ( Ribchester ) and Mamucium (a major Roman fort that occupied Castlefield in Manchester). The route of the road passed east of Blackburn Cathedral and probably crossed the river in the Salford neighbourhood just east of the modern town centre. It is not clear whether the road predated
944-547: Is on the outskirts of the town. Several lines of railway converge here, and pass through one principal station belonging to the Lancashire and Yorkshire Ry. Co. B. returns 2 members to Parliament. From around 1750, cotton textile manufacturing expanded rapidly. Supplied with cotton by merchants, and paid by the piece, cottagers spun cotton into thread and wove it into cloth. The merchants arranged for cloth to be bleached and dyed. After 1775, spinning mills were built in
1003-536: Is one of the chief seats of cotton manufacture, besides producing calico , muslin , &c., there being over 140 mills at work. There are also factories for making cotton machinery and steam-engines . Blackburn has been associated with many improvements in the manufacture of cotton, among which was the invention (1767) of the " spinning jenny " which was invented in nearby Oswaldtwistle by James Hargreaves , who died in 1770. There are several fine churches and public buildings. A Corporation Park (50 ac. in area)
1062-639: Is poignant, as Blackburn, once a small town, had risen to importance through the energy and enterprise of her spinners and manufacturers, combined with the skill and labour of her operatives. The Borough of Blackburn was formed by the amalgamation of the County Borough of Blackburn, the Borough of Darwen, part of the Turton Urban District and the parishes of Yate and Pickup Bank , Eccleshill , Livesey , Pleasington and Tockholes from
1121-404: Is the second largest town (after Blackpool ) in Lancashire. At the 2011 census , Blackburn had a population of 117,963 , whilst the wider borough of Blackburn with Darwen had a population of 150,030 . Blackburn had a population of 117,963 in 2011, with 30.8% being people of ethnic backgrounds other than white British. A former mill town , textiles have been produced in Blackburn since
1180-418: The 1955 general election , Blackburn East and Blackburn West were merged into the modern-day constituency which is relatively tightly formed and returns a single MP . The coat of arms of the former Blackburn Borough Council has many distinctive emblems. The blazon of the arms is: Argent a Fesse wavy Sable between three Bees volant proper on a Chief Vert a Bugle stringed Argent between two Fusils Or. On
1239-495: The Audit Commission described the council as "improving well" and gave it the highest "four star" overall performance rating. Although children's services, adult social care and GCSE results were praised, the commission highlighted "significant health problems" and increased "levels of repeat victims of domestic violence" as causes for concern. Despite generally good performance, overall user satisfaction levels with
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#17328011883661298-580: The Blackburn Rural District . Blackburn council and its successor have been predominantly controlled by the Labour Party since 1945 and continuously for 19 years until May 2007 when it fell into no overall control . In 2008, UKPollingReport characterised the constituency of Blackburn as "a mix of deprived inner-city wards dominated by Muslim voters, white working class areas and Conservative voting suburbs". Until 2015,
1357-535: The Bronze Age in the hills around Blackburn. In 1879, a cinerary urn was discovered at a tumulus at Revidge, north of the town; another was excavated in 1996 at Pleasington Cemetery, west of the town, by gravedigger Grant Higson. The presence of a sacred spring —perhaps in use during the Iron Age —provides evidence of prehistoric activity in the town centre, at All Hallows Spring on Railway Road. Blackburn
1416-771: The England First party, Mark Cotterill for Meadowhead ward and Michael Johnson for Fernhurst. Mark Cotterill has since stood down and Michael Johnson joined the For Darwen party. Members of the BNP won a council seat in the town in November 2002 following elections in May which saw three of their colleagues elected in nearby Burnley . The BNP's Robin Evans secured a 16-vote majority in Mill Hill ward with two recounts following
1475-581: The Textiles Act , another 17 mills closed. By 1960 there were 30 mills operating in Blackburn. Closures continued in the 1960s with The Parkside, Fountains, Malvern and Pioneer Mills shutting in 1964. In 1967 the Eclipse Mill at Feniscowles closed, unable to compete with imported cloth sold at nine pence cheaper per yard than the mill could produce. By the end of that year there were 26 mills operating. The 1970s saw further closures, and
1534-582: The crest , a Wreath of the Colours a Shuttle Or thereon a Dove wings elevated Argent and holding in the beak the Thread of the Shuttle reflexed over the back and an Olive Branch proper. The Latin motto of the town is Arte et Labore , correctly translated as 'By art and by labour' but often translated as 'By skill and hard work'. The motto, granted on 14 February 1852 to the former Borough of Blackburn,
1593-627: The African Spanish exclave Melilla , located right next to the border with Morocco where African migrants regularly attempt to enter the territory of the EU by climbing a triple fence with razor wire. In 2009, Ecologists in Action called the location insulting and asked the EU to investigate why more than €1.1m was given to the project by the ERDF. The petition was dismissed, because the objectives of
1652-583: The ERDF contributes towards financing the following measures: All awards of ERDF must comply with European Union competition law (including State Aid Law and Government procurement in the European Union ). Failure to comply with these legal requirements may result in irregularity rulings which carry financial implications. One project supported by the Fund is the Golf Club Campo de Golf in
1711-642: The MP was the former Secretary of State for Justice and former Foreign Secretary Jack Straw . The distribution of seats as of May 2018 was 44 seats for the Labour Party, 17 for the Conservatives and 3 for the Liberal Democrats . In July 1992, white and Asian youths rioted for several nights in Blackburn, with incidents taking place including an arson attack on a café which had allegedly been
1770-483: The council are below average and not improving. The borough has Beacon Council status and shares its best practice in education policy with other councils as part of the scheme. The historic constituency of Blackburn was created for the 1832 general election and sent two Members of Parliament (MPs) to Westminster until it was abolished in 1950 and replaced for one parliamentary term by two new single-member constituencies, Blackburn East and Blackburn West . At
1829-517: The existence of a British oppidum or walled village on the site, it being customary for such primitive communities to cluster in the vicinity of a ford or bridge. According to William Abram (1877): The Parish of Blackburn contains many interesting vestiges. Three of the four principal roads constructed by the Romans in Lancashire traversed some portion of the Parish ;: —I. The lower road from
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1888-421: The mid-13th century, when wool produced locally by farmers was woven in their homes. Flemish weavers who settled in the area in the 14th century developed the industry. By 1650 the town was known for the manufacture of blue and white "Blackburn checks", and "Blackburn greys" became famous not long afterwards. By the first half of the 18th century textile manufacture had become Blackburn's main industry. From
1947-677: The mid-18th to the early 20th century Blackburn evolved from a small market town into "the weaving capital of the world", and its population increased from less than 5,000 to over 130,000. John Bartholomew's Gazetteer of the British Isles provides a profile of Blackburn in 1887: Blackburn. parl. and mun. bor. , parish and township , NE. Lancashire, 9 miles [14 km] E. of Preston and 210 miles [340 km] NW. of London by rail – par., 48,281 ac., pop. 161,617; township, 3681 ac., pop. 91,958; bor., 6974 ac., pop. 104,014; 4 Banks, 2 newspapers. Market-days, Wednesday and Saturday. It
2006-493: The mid-20th century and subsequently faced similar challenges to other post-industrial northern towns, including deindustrialisation, economic deprivation and housing problems. Blackburn has had significant investment and redevelopment since 1958 through government funding and the European Regional Development Fund . The origins of the name are uncertain. It has been suggested that it may be
2065-414: The middle of the 13th century, when wool was woven in people's houses in the domestic system . Flemish weavers who settled in the area in the 14th century helped to develop the woollen cottage industry. The most rapid period of growth and development in Blackburn's history coincided with the industrialisation and expansion of textile manufacturing . Blackburn's textile sector fell into decline from
2124-556: The mills after 1825, the percentage of handloom weavers began to decline and this occurred more rapidly in areas closer to the town. In 1826 the Power-loom riots cam through Blackburn in response to the loss of jobs and low wages. Handloom weavers continued to make up a sizable portion of the workforce in outlying rural areas. The last handloom shop in Blackburn closed in 1894. In 1807, the Daniel Thwaites & Co brewery
2183-492: The north and south respectively. Blackburn experiences a temperate maritime climate , like much of the British Isles, with relatively cool summers and mild winters. There is regular but generally light precipitation throughout the year. Although the city of Preston, the administrative centre for Lancashire, is located about 9 mi (14 km) west, Blackburn is the largest municipality in East Lancashire. The town
2242-553: The north can be reached via a steep climb up Montague Street and Dukes Brow to reach a peak of 218 metres (715 ft) above sea level. European Regional Development Fund During the 1960s, the European Commission occasionally tried to establish a regional fund, but only Italy ever supported it. Britain made it an issue for its accession in 1973 , and pushed for its creation at the 1972 summit in Paris. Britain
2301-523: The northwest. The towns of Rishton , to the east, and Great Harwood , to the northeast, are both in the local government district of Hyndburn . The town of Burnley lies 11 miles (18 km) to the east. Located in the midst of the East Lancashire Hills, some areas of the town are characterised by steep slopes. The town centre centres in a plain of 91–110 m (299–361 ft) above sea level surrounded by hills. The Revidge to
2360-472: The number of textile workers in Blackburn reduced to 6,000 by January 1975, the year in which the Albion and Alston mills stopped production with the loss of 400 jobs. In 1976 there were 2,100 looms in operation in the town, compared with 79,405 in 1907. After continued economic decline in the 2000s, new investment began in the 2010s. In 2015, Scottish designer Patrick Grant rescued Cookson & Clegg,
2419-439: The police destroyed all fingerprints they had taken. Between 1948 and 1950 the textile industry experienced a short post-war boom, during which sales increased, industry training methods improved and automatic looms were introduced, which allowed a single weaver to control 20 to 25 looms. Loom sheds were rebuilt to house new, larger looms. Despite the post-war boom, the cotton industry continued to decline and only 25 per cent of
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2478-449: The police to fingerprint every male over the age of 16 who was present in Blackburn on 14 and 15 May 1948. After taking over 46,500 sets of fingerprints, a match was made with Peter Griffiths, a 22-year-old ex-serviceman. Griffiths admitted his guilt and his trial ascertained if he was sane or not. After deliberating for 23 minutes, the jury found him sane and he was hanged at Liverpool Prison on Friday 19 November 1948. After his conviction,
2537-473: The possession of Henry de Blackburn, who divided it between his two sons. Later, one half was granted to the monks of Stanlow Abbey and this moiety was subsequently granted to the monks of Whalley Abbey . During the 12th century, the town's importance declined as Clitheroe became the regional centre. In addition to a settlement in the town centre area, there were several other medieval domiciles nearby. Textile manufacturing in Blackburn dates from
2596-467: The primary source of wealth and income for handloom weavers, began to transfer from the cottage industry to factories. This led to high rates of unemployment: according to figures published in March 1826, some 60 per cent of all handloom weavers in Blackburn and Rishton , Lower Darwen and Oswaldtwistle were unemployed. High unemployment led to the Lancashire weavers' riots . At 3:00 pm on 24 April 1826,
2655-425: The rioting. In 1890, Blackburn's Chamber of Commerce had recognised that the town was overly dependent on the cotton industry, warning of the dangers of "only having one string to their bow in Blackburn". The warning proved prophetic when, in 1904, a slump hit the cotton industry and other industries dependent on it, such as engineering, brewing and building. In 1908, another slump saw 43 mills stop production and
2714-467: The settlement. George C. Miller, in his Blackburn: The Evolution of a Cotton Town , says: The ancient military way from Mamucium (Manchester) to ( Bremetennacum ) (Ribchester), passing over Blacksnape, plunges on its unswerving course through Blackamoor, over the scarp at Whinney Heights, to pass across the Blakewater in the vicinity of Salford. This fact alone presents a reasonable argument for
2773-580: The south to Carlisle, intersected the township of Walton-in-le-Dale. 2. The road from Manchester to Overborough crossed the Parish at its broadest part. 3. The road from the sea to the interior, which formed the conmiunication between the "Sistuntian Port" (on the Wyre) and Ribchester, Ilkley-in-Wharfedale, Aldborough andYork, enters Blackburn Parish at Ribchester, by a ford over the Ribble. The late Rev. E. Sibson, in
2832-549: The subject of a hostile takeover by Scottish & Newcastle Breweries in 1987, ceasing brewing in 1991. In 1928, there was another slump in textile production, and another strike in 1929 after employers requested a 12% wage cut; 40,000 cotton workers struck for a week and eight mills closed, making 28 closures in six years. By the start of 1930, 50 mills had shut and 21,000 people were unemployed. A financial crisis in 1931 led to 24,000 unemployed, with 1,000 houses and 166 shops lying empty in
2891-565: The tariff to 14 per cent. This caused the number of stopped mills to increase to 47, with 43,000 looms lying idle. Two years into the slump, Foundry and Limbrick Mills became the first to close permanently. Not long afterwards, in 1926, the General Strike saw production suspended at half the town's mills and 12,000 unemployed. In 1927, Matthew Brown & Co. relocated to the town's Lion Brewery, on Coniston Road, following their acquisition of local brewer Nuttall & Co, later
2950-471: The time of John Speed 's map of 1610, the spelling of the town was Blackburn , while the region was Blackburne . There is anecdotal speculation that the name of the town may simply mean "black burn", or "black stream". There is little evidence of prehistoric settlement in the Blakewater valley, in which Blackburn developed. Evidence of activity in the form of two urn burials has been discovered from
3009-541: The town appears in the Domesday Book as both Blacheburne and Blacheburn , a royal manor during the days of Edward the Confessor and William the Conqueror . Archaeological evidence from the demolition of the medieval parish church on the site of the cathedral in 1820 suggests that a church was built during the late 11th or early 12th century. A market cross was also erected nearby in 1101. The manor came into
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#17328011883663068-473: The town's population were employed in textiles by 1951; this figure had stood at 60 per cent up to the beginning of the Great Depression in 1929. In 1952 the number of weavers fell from 10,890 to 9,020. By 1955 more cloth was imported from India than was exported and between 1955 and 1958 another 16 mills closed. In 1959, due partly to the re-organisation of the textile industry as a result of
3127-412: The town. A total of 26 mills closed down between 1930 and 1934. Blackburn became the first town to undertake the mass fingerprinting of people following the murder of June Anne Devaney in May 1948. June Anne Devaney was a three-year-old patient at Queens Park Hospital when she was abducted from her cot and murdered in the hospital grounds on 15 May 1948. Fingerprints on a bottle underneath her cot led
3186-522: The town. Early mills were warehouse conversions; the first purpose-built spinning mill was constructed in 1797 and by 1824 there were 24. The number of spindles reached 2.5 million by 1870 and spinning mills were constructed up to that time – 24 since 1850. Spinning declined between 1870 and 1900 as the sector transferred to south Lancashire. In 18th-century Blackburn, weaving was primarily undertaken by handloom weavers working from their own cottages. However, as powerlooms were introduced into
3245-402: The various religious denominations of Blackburn and its surrounding areas. The Little Harwood Clock Tower was unveiled in 1923 and the hourly chime can still be heard in memory of the local lads that fell during the two World Wars. Its gardens are maintained regularly by council gardeners and provide a quiet alternative to the busy Whalley Old Road. There are two state-funded schools located in
3304-508: The ward of Little Harwood: St Stephen's CE Primary School and Tauheedul Islam Boys' High School . St Stephen's was formed 2010 when an infants and junior school combined on one site on Robinson Street at a multi-coloured rectangular building costing around £7million. Tauheedul Islam Boys' High School is a free school which opened in 2012. There are also two private schools within the ward of Little Harwood; Madressa-e-Islamia Educational Centre and Jamiatul-llm Wal Huda UK School. Little Harwood
3363-706: Was established; the company is still in business today and is now based at Sykes Holt in Mellor. Improvements to the power loom in the early 1840s, and the construction of a railway line in 1846, led to greater investment in power looms in Blackburn in the second half of that decade. The railway brought opportunities for expansion of the cotton trade, and in subsequent decades many new mills were constructed: between 1850 and 1870, sixty-eight weaving-only and four combined weaving/spinning mills were built and nine weaving mills were built per decade between 1870 and 1890. Improvements in power loom efficiency meant that weaving,
3422-542: Was formerly a township in the parish of Blackburn, in 1866 Little Harwood became a separate civil parish , on 25 March 1893 the parish was abolished and merged with Blackburn. In 1891 the parish had a population of 1190. It is now in the unparished area of Blackburn. Little Harwood is well known as the birthplace of Jack Walker , owner of Walker Steel and Flybe and benefactor of Blackburn Rovers FC, whose parents lived on Whalley Old Road. Blackburn Blackburn ( / ˈ b l æ k b ɜːr n / )
3481-501: Was going to be a large contributor to the CAP and the EEC budget, and sought to offset this deficit by having the ERDF established. They would then be able to show their public some tangible benefits of EEC membership. The ERDF was set to be running by 1973, but the 1973 oil crisis delayed it, and it was only established in 1975 under considerable British and Italian pressure. It started with
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