AN announcement that this year's Accrington Carnival is set to be the last ever has been greeted with shock and disappointment.

The Accrington Lions said organising the event had had a massive effect on members family life, interfered with work and childcare, and with other charitable activities they wanted to do.

A carnival has been held in Accrington since 1926 and the Lions have organised every one since 1989. Around 8,000 people visited the most recent event held earlier this month.

Oswaldtwistle Cllr Peter Britcliffe said it was incredibly sad news. " I know they experienced lots of problems not least with the funding. It's something of great benefit to Accrington and surrounding areas which may now have been lost. When I was leader of the council I put money aside in the budget for it," he said.

Hyndburn Cllr Paul Cox was surprised at the news.

He said: "It's a bit of a shock to be honest, it's quite a major event and we supported it whenever we could. It must take lots of organisation with all the floats and other things. There are lots of other organisations in the area but it must be a huge task to organise the festival," he said.

The bonanza included a traditional parade, as well as a Viking battle reenactment and parachute display.