BURNLEY'S sports facilities could receive a massive cash boost if plans to turn the town into a Sports Action Zone get the green light.

Burnley Council chiefs have put together a bid for the borough to be awarded Sports Action Zone status by the Government's Sport England group.

And the results of the proposals are expected to be announced next month -- with sporting facilities set to benefit to the tune of thousands of pounds.

Council bosses will be fighting it out with bids from other towns, and expect the battle for the status to be fierce as it will bring a large cash injection with it.

Funds -- exact figures will not be known until the successful bids are announced -- would be provided to improve existing facilities, as well as possible support for additional ones.

An initial bid to be made a Sports Action Zone went into the Government last year, although Burnley is now on the shortlist of areas bidding for the status.

A review of all of the borough's services has been carried out, including sports centres, play areas and football pitches, to assess the condition they are in and how much it will cost to bring them up to standard.

Similar reviews have been conducted into the borough's parks and open spaces and the park rangers service.

The Sports Action Zone scheme works on a similar basis to the successful Education Action Zone status which Blackburn secured two years ago, bringing with it an extra £5million cash.

The initiative has been introduced by the Government to target deprived areas and improve participation in sports activities.

It will see schools, community and voluntary groups, local authorities and sports facilities working together to try and improve health and fitness and the number of people taking part in sport.

Mick Cartledge, of Burnley Borough Council, said: "An outlying bid has gone in, although we are in the fairly early stages at the moment."