WHAT'S in a name? A road by any other name would cause less confusion

That's the view of residents of Sunnyside Close, Crawshawbooth, who believe their address is being confused with a new development just up the road called Sunnyside.

Councillors ruled that the new Tay Homes estate off Burnley Road should be called Sunnyside after the former Sunnyside Mill nearby.

They rejected the developer's suggestions of Riverside, St John's Close or the Grange, even though borough engineer Philip Cunliffe recommended Riverside.

They chose Sunnyside from a second list which also included Brooks Gardens and Brookside Green. Now a Sunnyside Close resident has lodged an official complaint against the council saying two near-identical street names so close together is causing "considerable confusion." The complainant, lodged under the official council complaints procedure, claims mail is sent to the wrong address, parcels are delivered to the wrong houses by carriers and the post office and there have been problems with gas bills due to an address mixup.

Eight families have already moved on to Sunnyside and 20 more are expected within the next month or so.

Councillors now have to decide whether to rename the new development or stick with the name Sunnyside.

But Mr Cunliffe has told members of the engineering and planning committee that changing the name at this stage could cause even more confusion for the new residents.

He has sent letters and plans to 25 statutory organisations advising them that the new properties will be numbered 2-70 and 1-43 Sunnyside throughout the estate.

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