ANGELA Kelly takes a personal look at the week in cyberspace in Bolton:Saturday brought a slight shiver to local parents when instant fines of up to £100 for children persistently late for school were announced.

A tough line with parents will also be taken on their children's persistent truanting and on unauthorised holidays. Good. School is vital for development and children need parents to back this view completely - even if it's easier for whatever reason to keep them off.

Monday was a day of gloom for Bolton Wanderers' fans after the euphoria of the Carling Cup run-up and the roller-coaster of the match the day before. Ah well, it brightened up a dull time of year and Bolton fans in Ivan Campo wigs certainly gave the rest of the country a giggle.

Tuesday brought good news for everyone like me who is fed up with folk who chuck their fag ends, half-eaten pasties and empty drinks' cans wherever they like. The litter wardens are on their way, with on-the-spot fines of £50 to make us keep the streets of Bolton clean. And claims that over-50 year-olds have impaired driving skills were refuted by the Bolton Advanced Motorists group which insists that older drivers are less likely to have accidents than younger ones. They've obviously never driven with me!

Wednesday warned of traffic chaos to come: 17 miles of ancient Victorian cast iron water piping is being replaced in and around the town centre. A £1.5 million scheme will involve disconnecting supplies to 6,000 homes as roads and pavements are dug up. And it will spread around the borough - all to ensure that home water supplies remain good quality. I'll drink to that.

Thursday showed disgraceful pictures of rotting rubbish behind Cawdor Street, Farnworth. Fed-up local residents say that fly-tippers are to blame and that the problem has been going on for the last two years. Bolton councillors have pledged to clean up the town, and urge residents to join them.

Friday was a bad news day for the country's most famous steeplejack, Bolton resident Fred Dibnah when the town's planning committee voted to turn down permission for a Victorian mineshaft on land around his home in Darcy Lever. I've seen this and it's magnificent, with plans to make it into a "working" mine for visitors to see. Some local residents are unhappy at the plan - personally, I think it's great, although admittedly I don't live near Fred. There has simply got to be a compromise somewhere on this, otherwise the town will look mean-minded and petty, and a fascinating project will be lost.

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