POLICE are hunting 20 teenagers who broke into a former town hall building and set fire to it.

Officers are warning parents to keep an eye on their children following the incident at the former Rawtenstall Town Hall building last night.

Police said the teenagers were seen to be throwing items out of the windows of the building in Haslingden Road and putting their lives and those of others at risk.

Nobody was seriously injured and no arrests have been made.

A police spokesman said: "Do you know where your children are? Yesterday evening around 20 youths between 11 to 16-years-old breached the fencing around the old town hall extension building in Rawtenstall and entered the building, where they were seen to throw items out of the windows.

"They ran away when police were called. When officers attended a small fire was discovered inside the building, necessitating the attendance of the fire service.

"We cannot overstate the danger in which these children are putting themselves and others. The former town hall extension building is in a very dangerous condition and this incident tied up officers and the fire service unnecessarily.

"We urge parents to help us by ensuring you know what your children are up to and where they are. The last thing you want to be doing is collecting them from the police station, or worse."

Anyone with information can call police on 101.