PARISH councils are being created for two Pendle towns in a bid to deal with issues at a more local level.

Nelson and Colne's new councils will be created after elections are held in May.

Borough councillors approved the motion at this week's full council meeting.

Town and parish councils are a tier of local government below borough councils, and they already exist for Barrowford, Barnoldswick and Earby.

Parish councils stage meetings, be consulted on planning applications and have the power to deal with low-level community issues.

Borough councillors for Bradley, Clover Hill, Marsden, Southfield, Walverden and Whitefield will help set up Nelson's parish council, with existing councillors for Boulsworth, Foulridge, Horsefield, Vivary Bridge and Waterside representing Colne working for Colne's.

On May 1, 23 new parish councillors for Nelson and 17 for Colne will be elected.

The cost of the councils have not yet been revealed. But other parish councils cost council tax payers up to £50 a year.

Councillors backed the creation of the two councils as a "strike for local democracy".

Welcoming the move Coun David Whipp said: "These communities have a very local council but parish councils will give the people of Colne and Nelson more of a say in what happens.

"They will allow people to be more connected with what is going on and get improvements to their areas.

"It will be very good for the area it means that the council will have the type of people whose primary aim is to ensure that their town is well served and the more people we have doing that the better it is."

The set up of the councils came about after Pendle Council's local government review in 2006, which the council is required to carry out every 10 years.

As part of the order for the two new councils, a small alteration will be made to the boundary between Foulridge, Kelbrook and Sough parishes, with the residents affected becoming subject to Kelbrook and Sough's council tax precept from April.

The two councils will have their first meeting in May after the elections.