BURY'S traditional Good Friday Holcombe Hill gathering has been called off due to the Foot and Mouth outbreak.

Church leaders have confirmed that their normal annual Act of Witness will abandon its long held procession and service on the local landmark, as the hill and surrounding countryside remain out of bounds to the public.

Instead, on Good Friday, April 13, a noon service will take place in the Market Square at Ramsbottom, conducted by the town's Christian Council of Churches.

Now the hundreds of people who would also normally visit Holcombe Hill on the day and over the Easter period generally, are being urged to stay away.

Greater Manchester Police have confirmed that they will have a presence in the area on Good Friday, to prevent access to the land which has been classed as "infected", due to the confirmed case of foot and mouth across the West Pennine Moors at Chorley.

Bury's borough environmental services officer, Alan Freer, said: "It is sad to lose a tradition like this, but it is only for one year, and it is because of exceptional circumstances.

"Holcombe Hill and the Act of Witness normally bring hundreds of people to the area, but this time we are asking people to stay away from the hill and surrounding moorland.

"The majority of footpaths in and around Hawkshaw and Ramsbottom are closed because of foot and mouth, and their closeness to livestock, farms and agricultural land.

"Elsewhere in the borough we are attempting to keep footpaths and rights of way open wherever there is no conflict with the Foot and Mouth regulations. Sadly, in the northern part that is not really an option.

"While the annual service will not take place on the hill, it will be held in the centre of Ramsbottom, which is of course still accessible, and there are attractions there, such as Nuttall Park and the East Lancashire Railway which remain open."