BURNLEY has been named as one of the greenest places in England, according to new figures.

The town now generates more electricity from solar, wind, hydropower and landfill gas than almost anywhere else.

The data, which has been released by the Green Alliance thinktank, lists Burnley as the sixth best-performing town with 14.44 per cent of its electricity coming from green sources.

According to the figures more than 38 per cent of Burnley's power comes from windfarms such as Coal Clough Wind Farm which is one of the largest onshore sites in England.

Cllr Jeff Sumner, who represents the town on Lancashire County Council, welcomed the news and said that it was a good stepping stone for Burnley to move on from.

He said: "This is great news for the town and bodes well for the future.

"The future is green and it's positive that Burnley is embracing green energy.

"It's a great stepping stone to move on from and I can see the town increasing the amount of green energy it uses over the coming years."

Top of the list of towns and cities in England was Grimsby with 28.27 per cent of its electricity coming from green sources.

Burnley saw off competition for sixth spot in the top 10 from Sheffield, Stoke, Swindon and Mansfield.

The league table was produced for The Climate Coalition as part of its #ShowTheLove campaign.

Micol Salmeri, a policy assistant at Green Alliance, said: "These figures are really exciting, as we can see that the shift to clean energy is happening and progress is being made.

"People really are waking up to what we need to do to protect the world from climate change.

"Across the country, people are putting solar panels on their roofs, and businesses are investing in this clean tech sector.

"February is an important moment following on from the Paris agreement the Show The Love campaign is aiming to galvanise support from the British public this Valentine’s Day and make it all possible.

"The Climate Coalition’s aim is 100 per cent clean energy within a generation, which we believe is possible, but we must spread the word and get people talking and acting."