BURNLEY'S community wardens have been picking up tips from their Dutch counterparts during a trip to Holland.

Four local wardens were invited to take part in the exchange trip to take a closer look at similar warden schemes in Utrecht and Haarlem.

Glenn Lindsay, Burnley's community warden service leader, said: "Most towns and cities in Holland have warden schemes. They have been operational for around 12 years and this visit has given us some useful insights and practical knowledge about how we could develop our warden schemes."

The scheme in Haarlem works mainly on run-down housing estates and projects have been developed to help the communities to make the estates safer and cleaner.

Dutch wardens will visit Burnley later in the year to see how the scheme is progressing.

Councillor Rafique Malik, Burnley Council's executive member for social welfare, said: "Exchange visits like this are valuable for all parties concerned and we have much to learn from each other. Our community wardens are proud of the good work they are doing in the community.

"They feel that the insights and knowledge they have gained from this visit will help to enhance the service."