COUNCIL staff are giving a bad impression of Accrington to members of the public, it has been claimed.

Coun Edith Dunston told a meeting of Lancashire Police Authority that town hall staff had told her 'six, or seven' elderly people had property 'snatched' in Accrington town centre each week.

Police at the meeting denied the claims, and revealed crime in the borough is actually falling - thanks to initiatives like Summer Nights, which aimed to tackle juvenile nuisance.

Now the claims are to be looked into by the council.

Coun Dunston said: "My friend had her purse stolen and I went to Accrington Town Hall with her to see if it had been handed in, and they said there were six, or seven, purse snatches each week.

"It may have been that they were reassuring her that it was not only her it had happened to."

Recently police issued a warning to shoppers in Accrington following an increase in the number of thefts from handbags but, at the meeting, it was denied the figures mentioned were accurate.

Coun Brian Roberts, deputy leader of Hyndburn Council, said if false information was being given out, something should be done as it gave a bad impression of the town to visitors.

It was agreed at the meeting that the borough's community safety partnership would look into the matter and, if possible, speak to the staff members concerned.

Superintendent Warren Turner, one of the top police officers in the borough, said the figures were untrue and, in fact, crime in Hyndburn was falling dramatically.