MORE people are moving to Pendle than any other area in East Lancashire, according to the latest census figures.

The latest figures show that Pendle's population has increased from 85,196 in 1991 to 89,252 in 2001.

This is against the trends for East Lancashire, with Pendle being the only area to show an increase in population.

Leader of Pendle Council Councillor Azhar Ali, said: "This shows that Pendle is a place where people are choosing to live because of the quality of life."

The census figures are now being studied by council officers in a bid to establish where future services should be directed.

They show that the largest increases in population are in the 10 to 19, 30 to 40, and 45 to 60 age bands. The report also showed that 84.9 per cent of the borough's population are white, with 14.1 per cent being Asian or Asian British.

Employment and unemployment levels in the borough are close to the national average, with 57.5 per cent employed against the average for England and Wales of 60.6 per cent. The unemployment level is 3.6 per cent.

The census results provided further proof of the scale of the housing problems that the borough faces. Almost 60 per cent of households are terraced -- compared to the England and Wales average of 26 per cent.

One in five households are without central heating, which is 20.3 per cent, compared to 8.5 per cent in England and Wales.

Brian Astin, the council's corporate policy manager, said: "Results show social and economic trends that will help the council and its partners to identify where future services should be directed."

The information from the report will be presented to Pendle Council's executive committee on Thursday, March 20.