REPRESENTATIVES from neighbourhood warden schemes across the North West gathered in Burnley yesterday to swap project ideas.

Burnley's community wardens were introduced in the autumn and have now become a familiar sight in Burnley Wood, Rosegrove, South West Burnley, Fulledge and Brunshaw.

Recognised by their distinctive burgundy and navy uniforms, they can be seen patrolling the streets, helping to reduce the fear of crime, particularly among the vulnerable and elderly.

They work closely with all the agencies that serve the community and largely concentrate their efforts on several hotspots in the town known for anti-social behaviour by children and young people.

The wardens have attempted to tackle the problems by developing creative schemes to encourage disillusioned and bored youths to take an interest in their communities.

These will soon be highlighted in a newsletter entitled Walkabout which will be distributed in their patrol areas.

At the North West Neighbourhood Wardens Network Conference, 60 scheme managers took part in discussions aimed at formulating procedures which could be adopted by all schemes in the region.

Councillor Charles Bullas, the council's executive member for public protection said: "The message I want to get across is that public safety should be at the top of every executive member's agenda. We made a lot of helpful suggestions during the conference to help our neighbouring towns who have not yet got a scheme off the ground and passed on our experience to those with schemes still in their infancy.

"I feel the wardens in Burnley have made a difference to people who face a range of social problems and difficulties."