Blackburn with Darwen Police conduct day of action to tackle community concerns
Friday, January 31, 2025
Blackburn with Darwen Police, in collaboration with several partner agencies, conducted a successful day of action on Wednesday 29th January, addressing pressing community concerns. The operation yielded significant results, with a quantity of drugs being seized along with illegal tobacco and vapes, as well as carrying out road safety checks.
A Misuse of Drugs act warrant was executed by the Blackburn with Darwen Task Force, as part of Operation Warrior, Lancashire Police’s response to tackling serious and organised crime, supported by Police and Crime Commissioner Clive Grunshaw. The warrant was executed at an address on St James Road, Blackburn, where a quantity of cannabis and crack cocaine were seized, along with a large amount of cash. A man, aged 34 and a woman, aged 32, both from Blackburn, were arrested on suspicion of possession with intent to supply a Class A drug. Both have been released under investigation.
The Darwen Neighbourhood Policing team were out across the rural and West Pennine areas tackling road safety issues alongside the DVSA. In total, 17 vehicles were checked, with three being given an immediate vehicle prohibition notice and two received a delayed vehicle prohibition notice. Officers and partners also seized one vehicle under Section 165 as the driver had no valid driving license and was reported, as well as issuing a ticket to one driver for a lack of a valid MOT. Officers carrying out the check also arrested a man, aged 62 from Manchester, on suspicion of driving a motor vehicle with a proportion of a specified drug above the specified unit. He has been released under investigation.
The day of action included officers going out with Trading Standards to address concerns surrounding some businesses in the area, conducting inspections at several premises leading to the seizure of a quantity of illegal vapes and tobacco.
Community engagement played a large part of the day. Neighbourhood officers attended a local nursery to speak to the young children and educate them about policing, giving them the opportunity to try on uniforms and sit in the police car. Officers also visited a local primary school to address issues about parking, educating parents and children on the rules and legalities to ensure people are parking safely and legally when picking up and dropping off children.
A community partnership meeting was held in conjunction with Blackburn with Darwen Council focussed on anti-social behaviour (ASB). The meeting is a collaborative effort between agencies to improve early intervention and efficiency with ASB complaints. This is a joined up approach to create positive early interventions to benefit the Darwen community.
Councillors joined officers out on foot patrol in the Edgworth, Tockholes and Belmont areas, speaking to local residents about their concerns and priorities and signing people up to Lancashire Talking, our community messaging service. They visited known anti-social behaviour and speeding hotspots to learn how we are tackling these issues and carried out speed enforcement checks.
Local Neighbourhood Inspector Kathryn McIntyre said, “It’s great that we have been able to remove a quantity of drugs and illegal tobacco products from the streets of Blackburn and Darwen.
“We will continue to actively work with our partner agencies to tackle the issues and concerns of our communities and this day of action is just a small example of the kind of activity we do day-in-day-out.
“We would encourage the community to continue to report their concerns, so that the right agency can take action as those engaging in this illegal activity.”
“We would encourage you, if you haven’t done so already, to take our Lancashire Talking survey. You can also sign up to In the Know to keep updated with what’s going on in your area, visit https://www.stayintheknow.co.uk/.”
