ORGANISERS of Preston's latest free publication - provisionally called Deepdale Bi-monthly - are on the hunt for volunteer hacks to help write news and information for around 9,000 Greater Deepdale residents.

Community-spirited people interested in trying their hand at writing are invited to attend a recruitment meeting at the Catherine Beckett Centre in Deepdale Road, tomorrow (Friday) between 6.30pm and 8.30pm.

Voluntary community journalists are required to write news and information on a range of issues including health, exercise, welfare and community safety.

The glossy eight-page publication was officially launched last week by Preston Mayor, Rose Kinsella and chairman of the Greater Deepdale Partnership, Coun Veronica Afrin.

It has been developed by members of the Ethnicity and Health Unit after a £6 million cash boost from the government's Single Regeneration Budget and will be delivered free to homes in the Greater Deepdale area.

More than £100,000 of Greater Deepdale Partnership cash has been put aside to run the bulletin for the next four years and it is hoped that contributors will take over in the future.

Local residents have given their backing to the new publication and have formed a community consultation group to support the bulletin which will be produced by the University of Central Lancashire.

Director of the ethnicity and health unit, Kamlesh Patel, said: "This is an exciting and innovative development for all sections of Greater Deepdale, while ensuring that they are involved from the start to carry this initiative well into the next millennium."

Converted for the new archive on 14 July 2000. Some images and formatting may have been lost in the conversion.