A FORMER Pendle policeman has returned to his old stomping ground as the new Inspector for Colne.

And Inspector Richard Clare has vowed to crack down on the yobs, who make lives a misery for others, by pledging to fight anti-social behaviour.

The 34-year-old is the grandson of Jack Fletcher, who was installed as Pendle's first mayor in 1973. He started out on his policing career 13 years ago as a patrol officer for Nelson.

In 1996, after nearly five years on the beat, he moved to Colne as a sergeant, before returning to the town as part of the road traffic unit in 2002.

Mr Clare, who is originally from Yorkshire, will be responsible for the day to day policing of not only Colne, but Barnoldswick, Earby and outlying towns in the borough like Foulridge.

He said: "I'm very fond of the Pendle area, having lived and worked here before and I still have family in the area so I am obviously very keen to ensure crime levels remain low.

"I am very keen to look at what more can be done to tackle juvenile nuisance and anti-social behaviour which I know greatly affect the quality of life for local people."

Mr Clare, who is married with one child, said he wanted to continue the good work the borough has done in tackling these problems.

He said he intends to work in partnership with the borough council and residents to restrict the activities of trouble makers.

Mr Clare, who has also worked in Bacup and Accrington, added that he wanted to build on the work of his predecessor Martin Holleran.

He said: "Inspector Holleran made terrific strides whilst he was here at Colne.

"I can only hope I receive as much support from the local community because in many cases, they are the key to helping us prevent and solve crimes."