The year in headlines from Reform UK suspension to a SEND system in crisis
The best of our exclusive, investigative journalism in 2025
Hello and welcome to The Lancashire Lead.
Today’s issue is again something of a reflective edition as we look back on the exclusive reporting we have carried out in 2025.
We invest in local journalism - particularly investigative journalism - because we believe that its at risk but that every area of the UK deserves to have it.
Stories we reported in 2025 went on to get spotlighted in the national media in ways that they simply wouldn’t have if we hadn’t done in the initial work.
Being properly informed will be a superpower in 2026 as misinformation and AI posts will become a greater concern than they are now.
And we’ll keep doing our best to make that as straightforward as possible for you in Lancashire.
January: Better understanding of link between domestic abuse and trauma ‘paramount’ after landmark trial in Lancashire
A better understanding of how domestic abuse is linked to trauma and suicide is ‘paramount’ in ensuring survivors and victims see justice. That was the message delivered by a charity boss after the sentencing of Ryan Wellings.
Wellings had been accused of manslaughter after his ex-partner Kiena Dawes took her own life and left messages detailing the abuse she had suffered at his hands. In police statements, messages and notes, Kiena, detailed the mental, physical and verbal abuse she suffered at his hands.
During a six-week trial, Wellings, 30, denied having any role in her death. He did admit hitting her but claimed it was self defence and rejected having any role in her decision to end her life.
Wellings, of no fixed address but last of Houseman Close, Blackpool, was found not guilty of manslaughter by a jury at Preston Crown Court. While he will serve six-and-a-half years for crimes of coercive and controlling behaviour and assault, he is not legally considered to be responsible for her death.
February: Pendle councillor - and property firm director - racks up council tax arrears
A Pendle councillor and property firm director racked up council tax arrears of almost £4,000 dating back to before his election.
Conservative councillor Tom Ormerod owed a total of £3,835 from the past three years, according to documents obtained by The Lancashire Lead.
Cllr Ormerod was elected to represent Vivary Bridge ward in 2023 and was unable to vote on last year’s budget as a result of the arrears.
He would resign shortly after our investigation was published.
March: Arts in the city that doesn’t express itself creatively like a city
Andy Walmsley wanted to create, but he didn’t want to leave Preston.
“I’m a Preston lad,” says Walmsley, reflecting on the late 1980s and 1990s when he began his career as a graphic designer. “I want to stay at home, I like living where I live.”
There were opportunities in other cities, but why not try and make a success of it on your own doorstep?
“To be honest, I found it intimidating anyway because I wasn’t from that world,” he reflects. “So I decided, that if I was going to do it, I’d do it myself and we’d be the best studio in Lancashire.”
April: £36,000 per year private school’s hidden history of financial problems
A £36k-a-year private school whose headteacher blamed tax rises for its sudden closure had a history of financial problems and was described as not effectively preparing pupils for life in the outside world.
Moorland School, in Clitheroe, closed the senior school at just two days notice in March, with headteacher Jonathan Harrison blaming “a combination of adverse political and economic factors” for being unable to continue operating.
In a letter to parents announcing the sudden closure, he listed Labour policies of VAT on school fees and the National Insurance rise among factors which also included unpaid school fees.
However, poor financial control at the private school dates back to 2008 with a history of businesses linked to the school being either shut down and replaced by new, debt-free ones or by being placed into and immediately bought out of administration.
May: Reform UK net zero assault risks 13,000 jobs and £1bn for Lancashire
Reform UK’s plans to restrict and obstruct green energy projects across Lancashire put over 13,000 jobs and over £1bn of value to the local economy at risk, analysis suggests.
Nigel Farage’s party is now in control of Lancashire County Council after an overwhelming victory in the 1 May elections.
But national politics continued to dominate the agenda, and public mood, and Reform UK have long stated their opposition to Net Zero. The party’s deputy leader Richard Tice said its new council leaders would block, hinder and obstruct climate infrastructure including solar farms, pylons and battery storage systems.
Analysis by the Energy and Climate Intelligence Unit says that net zero jobs are worth £1.16bn of added value to Lancashire’s wider economy and account for 13,421 (2.62% of total jobs).
June: Lancashire County Council slapped with SEND improvement notice as expected
Lancashire County Council was issued with a formal improvement notice after a damning inspection of its special education needs and disabilities (SEND) services.
The Department for Education (DfE) issued the formal notice outlining two areas of improvement and three priority actions which must be achieved to address failures within the department.
It follows an inspection in February which found “widespread and/or systemic failings leading to significant concerns” about the experiences and outcomes of children and young people in Lancashire with SEND.
The issue was frequently talked about as a major concern before the local elections with the previous Tory administration accused of desperately failing the children it should have been supporting. The improvement notice highlights the scale of the challenge facing the new Reform UK administration.
July: No conversation, ever, about care home being used for asylum seekers
Finney House will not be used as accommodation for asylum seekers - and there has never been a conversation about it happening.
That is the verdict from the owners of the building who intend to reopen the site as a care home when the Lancashire Teaching Hospitals lease expires.
The suggestion that the building might be used to house asylum seekers was first made by Luke Parker, at that time a Reform UK candidate for Preston East in the Lancashire County Council elections, in April.
Reform UK said that Cllr Parker did not wish to comment but that he was aware of the plans for the site. Despite that, he had neither corrected the record nor removed the post.
August: Reform UK’s top financial backer in Lancashire wants fracking 110%
Lancashire’s most prominent Reform UK backer has openly supported fracking, describing it as a “no-brainer” and saying those concerned about earthquakes should “sacrifice for the greater good”.
As the party declared its support for the practice nationally, new focus has been placed on the comments of David Haythornthwaite, the AFC Fylde chairman and self-made millionaire whose company has donated large sums to the party. Speaking to The Lancashire Lead, he doubled down on his belief that fracking should be restarted in the UK, whether that be in Lancashire or elsewhere.
Tangerine Holdings Ltd, the group which includes all of his businesses and is ultimately owned by an Isle of Man-based entity, gave £75,000 to Reform UK across two donations in 2024 and 2025.
September: Bodycare staff forced to foodbanks as they wait for redundancy payment that may never come
Long-serving staff at a High Street health and beauty empire which has gone into administration believed they will not receive proper redundancy payments.
Bodycare has already shut 32 of its stores in the UK and announced 450 staff will be made redundant.
The firm - which employs 1,500 people - blamed its collapse on the cost of running 147 shops, rising costs and fierce competition for consumer spending.
October: Councillor hit with legal threat after raising potential conflict of interest in Reform’s care home review plans
An opposition councillor at Reform-led County Hall was threatened with legal action after raising a potential conflict of interest concern in plans that could see ten care facilities close.
And that legal threat came despite County Hall bosses now conceding that Cllr Graham Dalton, Cabinet Member for Adult Social Care, will be advised to declare his professional interests in future.
Cllr Kim Snape, county councillor for Chorley Rural East representing Labour, had said that Cllr Dalton could profit from the potential closure of the care facilities due to his role as co-owner and director of private care provider First for Care GB Limited.
November part 1: Parents give left behind and forgotten SEND kids a voice at County Hall demonstration
Pairs of children’s shoes were left outside County Hall to represent SEND kids whose parents say have been failed by the local authority.
Parents gathered at the Lancashire County Council headquarters in Preston in the rain on Monday as part of dozens of demonstrations happening across the country.
The shoes were left along with messages that each told the story of the struggles families have faced in getting support and advice needed.
They sought to highlight the plight of children who have been ignored or misunderstood. They said children with special educational needs and disabilities (SEND) have felt isolated in classrooms without the right support, pushed into mainstream schools that are not suitable and left waiting years for Education, Health and Care Plans (EHCPs).
November part 2: Senior Reform UK figure at County Hall suspended by party
A senior Reform UK councillor has been suspended by the party after being confirmed as the author of leaked messages where it was alleged the party is far more ‘hardline’ on immigration than they are showing to the public.
County Cllr Tom Pickup, who represents Padiham and Burnley West at Lancashire County Council, is lead member for finances and resources and was seen as a senior figure within the party locally, will now sit as an independent.
Pickup shared a number of messages in a far-right Whatsapp group which included stating: “Everyone in Reform is a lot more hardline on immigration than is typically stated publicly, to get a majority government we have to be tactical.”
December: Lancashire County Council failing to meet own pothole targets in 10 out of 12 areas
Potholes in Lancashire are being repaired at a slower rate under Lancashire County Council’s much-touted new contractor, data obtained by The Lancashire Lead shows.
A report in November showed that the number of potholes on Lancashire’s roads had fallen to 35,514 in September 2025, down from 61,063 when the same snapshot was taken 12 months earlier.
But while headway has been made on Lancashire’s roads - at least in part due to £14m extra being made available to County Hall by the government - drivers are being left at risk for longer due to stalling performance on the time taken to fix the defects.
Contractor Multevo, the sole company tackling routine pothole repair work in Lancashire since Reform UK made the change in June, is responsible for tackling potholes classified at 10-day and 20-day defects.