POLICE today warned people who commit racist acts there was no place to hide after unveiling a new Hate Crime Unit in the wake of the Burnley riots.

The unit will tackle all crimes deemed to be racist or homophobic and will have a team of dedicated officers.

It was been launched as part of Pennine's Year 2002/03 Policing Plan and as a result of the constabulary reviewing its operations following last summer's disturbances.

Detective Sergeant Steve Pemberton said: "The disorder did give us food for thought in how we police the division and we realised that perhaps some of the practices we were covering before were not covering this particular need.

"When something like that happens you sit down and think about things more. It certainly made us sit down and made us rethink our policing."

A dedicated team of police constables and detectives have been assigned solely to the unit to ensure that all hate crimes, including racist and homophobic incidents are thoroughly investigated with firm and positive action taken against offenders.

DS Pemberton added: "It was decided by the management team that a gap needed filling regarding the investigation of these incidents. Due to other commitments hate crime wasn't being investigated perhaps as well as it could be.

"It will provide reassurance to the public and we will be aiming for intervention before a problem occurs.

Hate Crime does not necessarily need to be against a member of a minority or someone who is generally considered to be vulnerable.

The specialist unit has already started re-visiting victims of recent incidents and

carefully examining each and every new incident reported to officers right across Burnley, Pendle and Rossendale.

In addition to investigating these incidents, the team will also be monitoring the number of alleged crimes taking place across the three boroughs and looking for trends so that swift and appropriate action can be taken.

Inspector Graeme Fearn, a former Sergeant in Pennine Division's Partnerships and Community Safety Team, is in charge of the new Unit.

Inspector Fearn said: "We take allegations of hate crimes and incidents very seriously and each one is rigorously investigated. Up until now, that investigation has been the responsibility of a number of different departments.

"Having a dedicated unit means we can pool expertise and resolve incidents quickly and efficiently. It will also provide added reassurance to our local communities, particularly those who are most vulnerable, and increasing public reassurance is one of our key objectives this year.

"I hope our local communities will support the move which clearly demonstrates our firm commitment to ensuring that all hate crime is fully and fairly investigated, with appropriate action taken against offenders."

Daneshouse with Stoneyholme Councillor Rafique Malik said: "We have consulted with the public and there were five or six areas of crime which people expressed the most concern and hate crime was one of those.

"The Community Safety Partnership is preparing action plans to respond to people's anxieties, worries and fears about hate crime.

"A lot of elderly people have been subjected to that sort of crime and there has of course been some racial incidents, whether Asians against whites or whites against Asians.

"It is in the best interest of the community that something is done to eliminate this element and provide people with reassurance."