YOUNGSTERS found roaming around Accrington were today due to be pulled off the streets and placed back in class as police get tough on truancy.

Flanked by staff by Lancashire County Council's education department, police were out to tackle youngsters who should be in school.

And the officer leading the initiative today warned parents: "We'll stop your children even if you are with them."

It is the second time in five months that police in Accrington have joined together with county staff to rid Accrington of its truanting youngsters.

Last time, more than 100 youngsters were stopped, of which only 12 were on their own. The rest were with parents or guardians.

The operation also reduced crime in the town centre by 30 per cent on its first day, and 25 per cent on the second.

Insp Dale Allen, of Accrington Police, said: "Last time, parents we stopped said it was none of our business why their child was off school. It is our business, because it is a criminal offence to condone keeping your children off school.

"I cannot see any legitimate reason for a child being on the streets when they should be in school. If they are too ill to be at school, they are too ill too be on the streets."

Children rounded up will be taken to the New Era centre before being sent back to school.

The operation has become possible since the introduction of section 16 of the Crime and Disorder Act, which gives the police the power to take truants to a place designated by the local education authority.

The scheme was first pioneered in Blackburn last summer when more than 150 truants were found on the streets in just one day. The project then moved on to Hyndburn before Home Secretary and Blackburn MP Jack Straw announced plans to roll the scheme out across the country.

Insp Allen added: "Tackling truancy is an important issue for all the agencies involved in this initiative.

"By removing children from the streets, we are saving them from risks. Some of them are on the fringes of criminality and they cannot be allowed to move any further in.

"The police have the cooperation of the Local Education Authority and the support of head teachers across the borough.

"This initiative has taken a considerable amount of planning and we hope it send out the message that truancy will not be tolerated in Hyndburn.

"We have previously run an extremely successful operation where 106 parents were challenged and 12 children were returned to school.

"To us, this isn't a short term solution but a long term one."