Good evening,

We know there’s a lot of you out there. More, in fact, than we can possibly have imagined when we put out a request for pictures of your lockdown-born babies and were sent hundreds, if not thousands, of messages. Watch this space, we will be printing and sharing more of these very soon.

Now the way new parents, or, more specifically, mothers and babies, have been treated by professional services during lockdown is under the microscope.

A half million pound cash-pot will fund a team at the University of Central  Lancashire to look into how services have been adjusted during the pandemic under the massive strain the crisis has brought upon NHS services.

There's definitely been some positives, including the rapid development of easy-access video services - but there is no doubt the reduction in face-to-face appointments and necessary restrictions into who can attend what and how have made life difficult for new mums and babies during this period. Hopefully this work will help generations of mothers to come.

Meanwhile, we have been looking at masks ahead of Friday's introduction of rules to wear face-coverings in shops and at the very real possibility of a local lockdown in Blackburn.

Thankyou for supporting us, as we support you.

Nicola Adam, deputy editor.

You can contact me at nicola.adam@jpimedia.co.uk

Here are some of today's top stories ...