Evidence of drug taking has been found in Addingham by volunteers involved in the annual village clean-up.

Villagers were out in force on Saturday, March 23, taking part in the annual village clean-up operation. But little did they expect to find evidence of drug taking in Addingham.

Amongst the empty crisp packets and abandoned exhaust pipes some volunteers discovered used needles.

A volunteer involved in the clean-up, who wished to remain anonymous, said: "I personally found materials such as cigarette rolling papers and cigarettes, which had had the tobacco taken out of them, at the back of the Bowling Green.

"Other volunteers said they had found used needles, near to Sandbeds."

The chairman of Addingham Civic Society is calling for drug use in the village to be nipped in the bud.

Jane Scott said: "Members of our committee claim that they found a variety of drug-related things in the clean-up.

"We are all very concerned about this and feel that it should be nipped in the bud. If anyone has any ideas which could help stop this happening please get in touch with the Committee."

The discovery coincides with a month long drug crackdown by the Keighley Police Division, where residents were urged to call a specialist Drugs hotline with any suspicions they had about drug dealing.

The operation, which ended on March 31, was led by Detective Chief Inspector Roger Gasson, head of Keighley CID.

Officers wanted as much information as possible about vehicles connected to drug dealing, areas where drugs dealing may be taking place or houses.

The officers are now making a concerted effort to stop and search vehicles and people for drugs.

A drugs hotline has already been set up in the division - (01535) 617171 - and Det Chief Insp Gasson is urging people to continue to ring in with any information.

"We are determined to tackle this problem which blights local communities and ruins lives," said Det Chief Insp Gasson. "We know people are committing other offences to support a drugs habit."

The latest crackdown is in support of the Communities Against Drugs initiative, which was set up with Government funding awarded to Bradford's Crime and Disorder Reduction Partnership to fund anti-drugs activities.

Teams of police officers are already working towards disrupting drugs markets throughout the district and with extra information from the Keighley Division it is hoped to carry out a number of search warrants every week in the division.

"We are committed to tackling drugs in our communities," said Det Chief Insp Gasson. "To do this we need good quality information about people suspected of dealing. All information will be treated in the strictest of confidence."

Chief Superintendent Graham Sunderland, divisional commander of Keighley Police, said the issue of drugs was everyone's responsibility.

"We can't make a difference overnight but are committed to working with local people to work towards solving this community problem," he said.