Lancashire has so far been virtually untouched by the riotous scenes witnessed across the UK.

However, more than 100 officers from the force have been sent to the help fight looting, arson and other serious crime in London and Manchester.

Lancashire Police have reassured residents that their ability to deal with and prevent crime has not been affected by this.

No new applications for days off will be considered by Lancashire Police until further notice.

Assistant Chief Constable Peter White said: "Fortunately in Lancashire, we have had no major incidents of the kind of disorder seen elsewhere over recent nights.

“There have been some isolated incidents of criminal damage in some areas of the county overnight, which is usual for this time of year, but given the wider national picture we will be investigating the circumstances surrounding the motivations for such behaviour.

"I would like to reassure people that although there is nothing to suggest to us at present that there will be any disorder in Lancashire, a force-wide operation is in place to ensure that the situation remains under close watch and that resources are readily available should they be needed.

"We are really fortunate in Lancashire to have strong, law-abiding communities and this is invaluable to how we are able to police the county."

In the North West last night, masked and hooded youths went on the rampage in Manchester and Salford in scenes described by the police as 'unprecedented'.

Rioters played cat and mouse with police, looting shops, smashing windows and starting fires before moving on to another area of the city centre.

Greater Manchester Police Chief Constable Peter Fahy said 100 premises were broken into or damaged and officers made 113 arrests.

Mr Fahy described the disorder as 'organised and orchestrated' and said of the looting: "There were families turning up in cars and loading stuff into their boots."

Assistant Chief Constable Garry Shewan said the rioting and looting had brought 'shame on the streets of Salford and Manchester'.

Mr Shewan admitted that Greater Manchester Police were "overwhelmed" by the "sickening" violence and had to call in help from other forces in the region, including Lancashire.

And he said his officers were "absolutely intent" on bringing those responsible for the destruction to justice.

"Already today we have begun the process of arresting people whose images have been captured on CCTV and other media," he said.

"My message is extremely simple - hundreds and hundreds of people, we have your image, we have your face, we have your acts of wanton criminality on film.

"We are coming for you from today, and no matter how long it takes, we will arrest those people responsible."

Around 200 volunteers gathered in the Piccadilly Gardens area of Manchester this morning where they were equipped with brushes, bags and gloves and sent out to help with the clean-up of the city.

There was a second night of disorder and damage in Liverpool last night with 35 arrests as missile-throwing youths gathered in the suburb of Toxteth.

A gang of 50 hooded youths also rampaged through Birkenhead town centre on the Wirral.

Merseyside's Chief Constable Jon Murphy promised to take robust action against those responsible and said there had been 'almost unprecedented levels of violence shown towards my officers'.

Elsewhere in England, three men, who were reportedly protecting local shops from looters, died after being hit by a car in Birmingham.

Trouble also erupted in Nottingham, Derby, Leicester, West Bromwich, Wolverhampton, Bristol and Gloucester.

A beefed-up presence of 16,000 officers, including 76 from Lancashire, patrolled London.

Three experienced police support units, made up of 1 inspector, 3 sergeants and 21 PCs from across Lancashire, went to London where they are also being trained in public disorder tactics.

Some had already been involved in this year’s large-scale English Defence League operations while some have experience of the Burnley Riots 10 years ago.