A SERIES of public meetings organised by Burnley Council has been branded a "disaster" by opposition councillors.

The council's Face-to-Face Roadshow aimed to give residents the opportunity to see what the council was doing and raise any issues of concern in their neighbourhoods.

Six meetings were held at venues across the borough and were also attended by special guests including representatives from the police, Burnley, Pendle and Rossendale Primary Care Trust, Lancashire County Council and Burnley Initiative.

Council leader Stuart Caddy said the initiative had been a great success.

But at a meeting of the full council, Conservative councillor Peter Doyle said only 194 people, out of a population of around 70,000 had attended the meetings. He said: "The council leader's and my definition of success are somewhat different.

"I would have thought disaster would have been a more realistic description.

"The total cost of the exercise is not available but I think the cost per person will be quite substantial."

He was supported by independent Coun Paula Riley. She said: "I don't think they were successful.

"Spending all that money on these meetings is disgraceful."

Coun Caddy defended the meetings, claiming they had sparked lively debate about a wide range of issues.

He said: "It was a chance for us to say what we are doing and what our partners are doing, and listen to questions from local residents.

"We have learnt a lot about going out there and talking to people and we need to get better at it.

"It is a listening programme and is all about us going out to meet the people.

"We want to encourage people to come, but we can't force them to come.

"The vast majority of those 194 thought the meetings were a success and wanted more in the future."

He added: "When we started this initiative with three meetings last year we were one of the first authorities in the country to do anything like this. Other authorities are now looking at Burnley's Face-to-Face Roadshow as a model for this kind of thing."