PARENTS have been advised to walk their children to school to avoid a potholed road which has been branded a ‘minefield’.

Complaints have been lodged with the county council about a section between Winckley Road and Chequers in Clayton-le-Moors which run alongside All Saints Church of England Primary School.

The road, which has been slammed as ‘dangerous’, is unadopted which means it is not maintainable at public expense.

It means residents on the street could be forced to cough up the cash if they want it repaired.

Mental health worker at Blackburn with Darwen Council, Mark Nicholson, said he often uses the road to walk his 10-year-old daughter Lily Rose to and school.

The 45-year-old, from Barn Meadow Crescent in Rishton said: “It’s really bad. It’s like it’s had some landmines go off in the middle of it. It’s been like that for years. It’s dangerous. People could fall or hurt their ankles.

“I complain every time I pick my daughter up. I called the county council and they did not do anything. They said to knock on somebody’s door and to ask them who owns the road because it’s private.”

Clayton-le-Moors councillor, Tim O’Kane, said the section of road was unadopted and not the responsibility of the highways department at the county council.

The Labour councillor said: “It’s unfortunate but there’s very little that can be done in cases like this.

“You can have an unadopted road with around 10 to 15 residents, and then if they want sometime doing, an engineer gives them a price which they usually can’t afford.”

A school spokesman said: “We are aware that, when Winckley Road ends and becomes Chequers, it’s unadopted and we know about the state of it.

“When it rains, there are a lot of puddles and the depth of the potholes are disguised by the water.

“The school promotes healthy living and exercise, so parents could park further away and walk with their children, which would avoid the road.”

Lancashire County Council's highways manager for Hyndburn, Oliver Starkey, said: "Chequers is an unadopted road, which means that the landowner is responsible.”