The number of police officers being physically attacked while on duty in East Lancashire has risen by 50 per cent in the last five years.

According to figures obtained by the Lancashire Telegraph from a Freedom of Information request, there were fewer than 50 attacks on officers in East Lancashire in 2014, a figure that rose to more than 70 by 2019.

The towns that have seen the worst rise in assaults on police are Accrington, Burnley, Colne and Darwen.

The number of police officers who have been assaulted in Blackburn has dropped.

So far this year, 18 officers have been attacked in the town while on duty, which includes assaults that have taken place in custody suites. In 2014, this figure was 26, dropping to 19 in 2015.

However, the years 2016-2018 saw a dramatic rise in attacks in Blackburn, with 41, 35 and 31 police officers attacked in the years respectively.

Despite the fall this year, the figures for neighbouring towns have continued to rise.

In Accrington in 2014 there were five assaults on police officers; this rose to eight in 2016.

And so far this year there have been a total of nine physical attacks reported on officers policing the town.

The statistics for Burnley have followed a similar pattern, with 11 assaults recorded in 2014, and 19 so far in 2019.

In Colne the number has slightly risen, from zero in 2014, to just under five this year, while Rossendale has seen an increase too, as there were no recorded assaults on officers in 2014, but by November 2019 around five officers had been assaulted in the borough.

Darwen has seen an almost 100 per cent rise, as fewer than five officers were assaulted in 2014, compared with nine so far this year, figures that were made worse by the attack on Sgt Andy Gore and his colleagues at a property in the town in April.

Sgt Gore and his team were called to attend a distress call at a property in Ash Grove in Darwen in April.

On arrival, he and his colleagues had to force the door of the house and were then confronted by Paul Elliott, who squirted ammonia at the officers from the top of the stairs.

Two officers were hit with the liquid, but Sgt Gore took the brunt of the attack, with the ammonia running into his eye and down his throat.

He was left partially blind and faces months of agonising surgery.

In his victim personal statement, which was read out at Elliott’s sentencing hearing, Sgt Gore said: “”I have never felt pain like it before and felt it going down my throat to my lungs.

“I thought ‘I am in serious trouble here’.

“I then blacked out or fainted and the next thing I remember I was stood at the kitchen sink.

“I thought I was going to die.”

Elliott was jailed for 14 years.

Chief Constable Andy Rhodes from Lancashire Police has been outspoken about the fact he will not tolerate attacks on his officers.

He said: “Officers and staff routinely put themselves in harm’s way as they carry out their duties serving our communities and protecting the public.

“It should not be seen as simply part of the job and we will continue to seek the prosecution of anyone who assaults our staff and, more importantly, will support our officers and staff if they are assaulted.”

In 2018, a new law was passed to crack down on assaults on emergency service staff.

The Assaults on Emergency Workers (Offences) Act 2018 was introduced in November as a response to the increase in assaults on public servants.

However, these recent figures appear to suggest that the law is not having the desired effect as a deterrent.

The overall figures detailed above pale in comparison next to those recorded in Preston, where there were 33 assaults on officers in 2014, rising to 44 so far for 2019; while in Blackpool that figure jumped from 34 in 2014 to 63 in 2019.

Rachel Hanley, chair of Lancashire Police Federation said: “Just one officer assaulted is one officer too many.

“These figures are a stark reminder of the dangers our officers face on a day to day basis.

“Assaults on officers are sadly commonplace, but it should never be part of the job, they can and do have a devastating impact on officers lives.

“Our emergency services are stretched to capacity and anyone convicted of mindless acts of violence should be dealt with dealt with appropriately.”