PUBLIC opening times at Barnoldswick Police Station have been cut by four hours a day.

The front door at the station, on Fernlea Avenue, is now open for just eight hours a day, from 10am to 6pm Monday to Saturday. It is closed on Sunday.

Previously the public could call between 8am and 8pm Monday to Saturday, but monitoring of visitors and the times they called showed those hours were not cost effective.

Even so, the latest reduction in opening hours is expected to meet with opposition from local people who previously campaigned against the night-time closure of the station.

They argued it was vital to have somewhere to go for help in an emergency and that a phone link to a control room in Burnley was inadequate.

Although that campaign failed, protestors were assured that there would be no further reductions in service levels.

Meanwhile, police stations in Colne and Nelson will be open to the public from 8am to 8pm, leading West Craveners to claim they are being short-changed.

Police in Pennine Division this week sought to reassure local residents that the latest reduction in hours at Barnoldswick Police Station's public inquiry desk would not mean a reduction in service.

In fact, according to Chief Supt John Knowles, re-aligning hours to meet public demand should lead to an improvement in service. Staff would be available at peak times to deal with inquiries, he said.

The cost savings could also help to put more officers on the beat.

The decision to change the opening hours was not made lightly and followed research into visitor numbers, said Chief Supt Knowles.

"I realise the importance people place on local police stations and, like most people, I would love to be able to keep Barnoldswick Police Station open all day.

"However, research over the past six months shows that very few people visit later on in the evening so it simply isn't viable for us to keep the enquiry desk open.

"By reducing the hours, we believe we will be able to give a better quality of service to people when they do visit us and ensure that our officers are out on the beat where they should be, not staffing inquiry desks."

Chief Supt Knowles added: "Anyone who goes to Barnoldswick Police Station and finds it closed can still make immediate contact with us by using the yellow phone at the front of the station.

"Where there is someone in urgent need of police assistance then we would always do our utmost to help them regardless of whether the inquiry desk is open or not."

The research showed that most visitors attended the station between 11am and 2.30pm. On most weeks, no-one visited in the evenings.

Meanwhile, the opening hours at Earby's new police office, in Victoria Road, have been altered, but not reduced.

Adjusting the hours in line with the times that most people visit has meant the office is now open on one extra day.

The new opening hours are from 10am to 1pm on Monday, Wednesday, Thursday and Friday, and from 9am to 1pm on Saturday.