BURNLEY Borough Council has put forward proposals to try to unite the town's community in the wake of last year's riots.

The Community Cohesion Action Plan sets out the key challenges facing the town and gives examples of the ways they could be tackled.

The report - which was presented to Burnley Borough Council's executive on Tuesday - was compiled at the request of the Government, which asked the towns affected by last year's trouble, Burnley, Bradford and Oldham, to set out how they would deal with community cohesion issues.

The council has defined community cohesion as "a state where different communities live and work confidently alongside each other, recognising each other's differences, but sharing a sense of belonging and place and working towards a common prosperity".

Issues covered by the plan include participation in civic life, developing leadership, increasing community safety and increasing employment and training opportunities. A major initiative to establish an effective race equality in East Lancashire has also been launched.

Burnley Borough Council will also be helping other local authorities when they take centre stage at a national conference on cohesion.

The London conference, Community Cohesion: The Role of Local Government, will feature speeches from council leader Stuart Caddy and the authority's head of regeneration and development, Mike Cook.

Mr Cook said: "We have spent the last nine months laying the foundations for building a stronger, more cohesive community.

"The conference is all about sharing our experience and knowledge, and the good practice we have developed over recent months, with other local authorities."

The conference will also feature contributions from Home Office minister John Denham and Ted Cantle, chair of the National Community Cohesion Panel.