AN INTER-community carnival is set to be held in Burnley this summer after the Rank Foundation charity gave a £90,000 grant to police.

The money will support various projects in the town over the next three years aimed at improving community cohesion.

As well as the planned carnival, which is waiting approval from Burnley Council, the money will pay for a "Bridge the Gap" project aimed at breaking down barriers between young and old in different communities.

The first event in that project took place on Sunday when a group of youngsters escorted a group of 114 older people to see a show in Blackpool.

Cash will also go into a community chest pot where police community beat managers and community support officers will be able to target community groups in need of cash, such as sports prjects.

The first installment of the cash, £35,000, was handed to police by the Rank Foundations director of grants David Sanderson, on Friday.

The charity agreed to fund the projects after visiting Burnley and being a tour of some of the most deprived areas of the town.

Mr Sanderson said: "We were struck by the history of racially motivated violence in the area and the rise of the BNP as well as the problems caused by drugs like heroin which have had a serious impact on levels of crime.

"The money is all about encouraging schemes and improving community cohesion. We want to work with the police and the community to create opportunity."

Inspector Jeff Brown, part of Burnley Police's community safety team, said: "We were very pleased that the Rank Foundation expressed an interest in what was happening in Burnley and were privileged to have the chairman come to the town for a tour around. We were delighted to receive such a generous sum of money."

Supt Steve Hartley, of Burnley Police, said projects were aimed at improving cohesion between people of different age groups, cultures and sections of the community.

The Rank Foundation, established in 1953 by the late Lord and Lady Rank, supports schemes for young people and those frail or lonely through disability or old age.