AN ambitious project to create an innovative deaf-run business centre has won a low-interest loan to buy bigger premises.

The East Lancashire Deaf Society, which aims to transform the historic but dilapidated King's Court building, Blackburn, has won a £98,000 loan from the Architectural Heritage Fund.

Peter Johnson, of ELDS, said the society was celebrating using £40,000 of the cash to buy the Pendlebury Carpets building at the back of King's Court last week.

He said: "This purchase almost doubles the size of the building. We have wanted to buy it for almost a year."

The remaining money will be used to begin the £3.5million renovation of the buildings so ELDS staff can begin working from King's Court.

Blackburn architects Campbell Driver Partnership, have now applied for planning permission for a restaurant and small business units on the ground floor, with conference facilities on the first floor and the ELDS offices on the second.

The adjoining Pendlebury Carpets building will house part of the restaurant and more small business units.

The Society is now concentrating on applications for grants from the Regional Development Agency, the National Lottery and various European funding bodies, which may take several months to process.

Peter Johnson said they originally hoped to have the buildings complete and open to the public by October, but now expect the work to take until October 2001.

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