A CANCER charity supporter's poster advertising a fund-raising event was taken down by council staff because the authority will not profit from ticket sales.

Event organiser Richard Walsh said he was "absolutely flabbergasted" when staff at the Blackburn with Darwen Council-run Information Centre told him the poster had to be moved.

Mr Walsh, from Blackburn, put his A3 poster advertising a Choral and Brass Bonanza at Westholme School in aid of Macmillan Cancer Support in the Church Street centre's window last week. But when he passed the centre a few days later, it had been taken down.

When he asked staff why, they explained that as they were not getting a cut from ticket sales, the poster had been moved to a door inside the centre.

Mr Walsh today said he could not believe the staff could be such "sticklers" for rules when the charity poster was for such a good cause.

He said: "I honestly couldn't believe what I was hearing.

"To tell me that they would not put it in the window because they were not making money out of it is not only tactless but extremely uncharitable.

"Everybody involved in this event has given up their talents and their time completely free of charge to raise as much money as possible.

"I had to leave the centre straight away before I told them what I thought about their policy.

"Surely the centre is there for the people of Blackburn to use and get information from not just for the council to make a profit.

"Even if they couldn't continue to display the poster in the window they should have been more sympathetic in explaining why it had to be moved."

The council's director of regeneration, housing and neighbourhoods, Adam Scott, said: "Our policy is to only show tourism events on the front window as the prime function of the visitor centre is to promote the borough so people from outside of the area return again to spend money in the town.

"Although we have limited space for posters in the window, we did actually display this particular one on an outward facing window initially before we replaced it with a poster advertising the Garden Festival at Samlesbury Hall, which we are selling tickets for.

"This policy was not explained to the gentleman clearly.

"We did place the charity poster inside the visitor centre and hope people that use the centre will see it."

l The concert takes place at Westholme on May 25 at 7.30pm. Tickets, costing £10, can be obtained by calling Mr Walsh on 01254 675495.