A FAMILY had a lucky escape after arsonists set fire to their home during the night.

Police are investigating the fire, in a house in Villiers Street, Burnley, which was started in the early hours of this morning.

It is thought to have been started by something pushed through the letter box of the house, which then set fire to the plastic front door, releasing fumes into the house, while two adults and two children slept inside.

The carpet also caught fire and one of the adults woke up. But he couldn't get out the front door because of the amount of smoke coming up the stairs, so the family barricaded themselves in a bedroom and called the firefighters, at about 2am.

Crew manager Mick Hawke, of Burnley fire station, said: "Someone had put something through the letter box.

"There was quite a bit of smoke in there. The police turned up first and the family threw a key out the window and they got them out."

Mr Hawke said the incident could have been much more serious as the house did not have a smoke alarm.

He added: "If he hadn't woken up the fire could easily have spread and it could have been a lot worse."

Crews immediately fitted an alarm and Mr Hawke urged people to get a free fire safety check by calling 0800 1691125.