TWO East Lancashire boroughs have been given £125,000 each to tackle anti-social behaviour.

Blackburn with Darwen and Burnley are two of 40 "Respect" areas revealed by the Government yesterday.

The cash will be used to target nuisance behaviour and troublesome families.

The "Respect" areas were selected due to their levels of deprivation, anti-social behaviour, truancy and school exclusions.

The scheme has been branded a "gimmick" by the Conservatives, but council leaders in the boroughs said the scheme would bring real benefits.

And a resident who took on drug dealers and prostitutes in her area and received a Government award for her work last year welcomed the scheme.

But Rosina Smith, 52, of Stonyhurst Road, Bank Top, Blackburn, said the scheme would only work if everyone got behind it.

Rosina said : "Hopefully it will make a difference - it depends on attitude of the people involved.

"Everyone has to co-operate, the offenders, the police and the local authorities.

"People need to take responsibility and hopefully this will build on the work already done."

Coun Andy Kay, chair of Blackburn with Darwen Community Safety Partnership, said: "We recognised that tackling anti-social behaviour does not simply involve handing out ASBOs, but it requires interventions to address the causes of the problem and these can only succeed withworking with the communities."