SUPER-SIZE school uniforms have hit the shelves as nearly one in five children in East Lancashire are now classed as obese.

One shop in Burnley is now stocking trousers with a 48-inch waist, which are classed as 5XL, while a supplier in Clitheroe is selling blazers with a 56-inch chest, 16 sizes bigger than the average adult fit.

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It comes as Lancashire doctors called for urgent action from the government to prevent a childhood obesity crisis, with official figures suggesting Year 6 pupils in Blackburn with Darwen, Burnley, Hyndburn and Pendle are among the fattest in Europe.

Shahid Aslam, whose family runs the Moonline children’s clothes shop in Burnley, said: “We’ve introduced ‘sturdy fit’ trousers that go up to a 48-inch waist, and believe me we do sell them.

“We have also sold large adult sweaters to children, when they’re not even in the last year of primary school.

“And we now do blazers up to 50 inches when it used to be 42.”

Meanwhile, Clitheroe-based uniform supplier, Trutex, has extended its uniform range to provide made-to-order blazers for chest sizes of up to 56-inches.

A spokesman said: “We work closely with our retailers, and over the last few years they’ve been advising us that parents are now often asking for bigger sizes of the garments we manufacture.

“As a result we have extended the options, across all our ranges, at the higher end of the sizing spectrum.”

Caroline Fotios, of the Blackburn-based charity Mum’s The Word, said they have also had requests for surprisingly large sizes.

She added: “There was one recently where we had to find a large adult sweatshirt for a 10-year-old pupil.

“The child came in with his parent and I thought he was going to be be much older than she said.”

Both Lancashire County Council and Blackburn with Darwen Council have made reducing the number of obese children a priority.

Dr David Wrigley, who represents Lancashire’s doctors on the British Medical Association, added: “It is vital there is a joined-up focus on obesity and everyone needs to play their part – doctors, politicians, the food industry, super -markets and the advertising industry.”