A SPECIAL court has been set up to deal with people charged in connection with last summer's Burnley riots.

A hearing will take place at Preston Crown Court on Monday, March 4, and is expected to be held over a week.

Judge Peter Openshaw will preside over the specially arranged court sittings, which will deal with 27 people charged with public order offences as a result of the disturbances in Burnley.

More than 40 detectives worked on the investigation into the disorder which broke out in the town over three days in June.

Police published sets of pictures of people wanted for questioning in local newspapers, including the Lancashire Evening Telegraph.

The investigation team, drafted in to Burnley from all divisions of Lancashire Constabulary, made inquiries in the most serious incidents, including serious assaults and arson attacks on shops, businesses and vehicles.

A major incident room was set up at Burnley police station, where officers trawled through hundreds of tapes of CCTV film.

Those due to appear before Judge Openshaw at the hearings are: William McRandle, Darren Hall, Philip Kirkby, Paul Duckworth, Andrew Porter, Paul Hodgetts, Edward McMahon, Ryan Grimshaw, Liam Burns, Mark Beckett, Martin Quigley, Carl Stoiles, Dale Fallows, Nicholas Macro, Martin Rogers, Christopher Pounder, Anthony Robinson, Jamie Southern, Dale Grey, Jonathan Shackleton, Anthony Bithell, Christopher Bowden, David Telford, Patrick Brogan, Kevin Rooney, Adrian Porter, and Michelle Bruce.