ALTHOUGH there are many signs of real progress being made in Burnley to mend the problems seen as underlying causes of last year's riots in the town, it is worrying that a delay has hit one key area.

For despite the advances shown in the first six-monthly report on the action plan devised by the Task Force set up after the disturbances, it also reveals that the council has still not set up the professional communications unit which it was recommended to have had in place by last July.

This is regrettable because one of the prime purposes of this unit is to get rid of damaging misconceptions and myths that have blighted community relations in Burnley in the past - and proved a touch-paper for trouble.

For one of the Task Force's key points was to stress that whenever resources are directed to any of Burnley's communities, the reasons for it and any conditions applying to it should clearly spelled out to the people of the town.

In short, the problem was that whenever money or grants were directed to particular areas of Burnley, especially those with high concentrations of ethnic minorities, because the reasons for them and the rules governing them were not getting through to people, some wrong and potentially-provocative assumptions were being made.

These were that certain areas were getting preferential treatment and more than their fair share. Wrongly, some people perceived bias and reacted negatively.

It is vital, then, that in future no such error is allowed, and that the council effectively communicates the facts, purposes and conditions over where and to whom public spending is directed. And it needs to have in place a unit which will do this as soon as possible. The reasons for the delay may be explained by hitches in the recruitment process and, in contrast, there is much encouraging progress on implementing other Task Force recommendations, on issues ranging from housing and increased mixing between the town's different communities.

But this is a key issue which needs urgent action and must been seen in the next six-monthly report to have not only been dealt with but also to be working with real effect.