A FATHER-of-two has spoken of his horror at finding dozens of used syringes scattered along a canalside.

Brian Ravenscroft, 24, was walking along the Leeds and Liverpool Canal at Highfield Locks when he made the grim discovery. Mr Ravenscroft, of Blackburn, counted around 60 syringes and said he was worried a child would pick one up.

He said: "I rang the police and they said I should move them, but I can't bring myself to touch them. I think it is disgusting. They are in a place where children play and I am concerned for their safety.

"I have seen the odd one lying around in the past, but I have never seen so many in one place like this. A child could easily pick one up and hurt itself."

A spokesman for British Waterways said the local office had been notified of the syringes and they would be moved immediately. He added that some of the needles were on land owned by a local company and they would be contacting management to alert them to the problem. Inspector Stephen Howorth of Blackburn Police, said the public would be advised to move syringes if there was an immediate danger - for example, if children were playing nearby. "Generally, we would advise people not to touch them because anything like that needs to be removed by people with specialist equipment such as safety gloves," he said.

"In certain circumstances it is sensible for whoever finds them to take them away, but they do need to be disposed of properly, at a hospital or doctor's surgery, and not just thrown into a bin."

Christine Rawsthorne, needle exchange co-ordinator for Communicare in Blackburn, said: "The disposal of used needles and syringes is something that we take very seriously. We have an ongoing education programme on that subject.

"All clients are encouraged to take a sharps container with them to keep used needles etc in until they return them to us, when we will exchange them for clean equipment.

"There is no need for indiscriminate disposal of this equipment but, unfortunately, you will always find irresponsible people who do it."

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