A WORRIED mother has been left shocked after her young daughter spotter a discarded syringe as they walked to school.

The pair were walking along the cut from Bookwell to Fell View Drive in Egremont when her eight-year-old daughter spotted the needle on the path and cried out ‘those are dangerous’.

Laura Henney, from Egremont, who has two children, warned others of the danger. She said: “There is a discarded syringe on the path down the cut from Bookwell to Fell View Drive. I called the council but a lot of children walk that way to school so just be careful.”

Worried that someone with children could come into contact with it, she shared the information with others.

She said: “It was on the footpath and it was my eight-year-old daughter that spotted it and said ‘those are dangerous aren’t they?’ It just made me feel uneasy to be honest, a lot of kids use that path to walk to school and I dread to think if one of them had seen it and picked it up.”

Copeland Council sent a member of the community service team to check the area and remove the needle, but has warned people to never to touch discarded syringes and to report any findings as soon as they can.

The council’s community services manager, Shirley Procter-Dow, said: “We did not receive a report of a needle in this location, but have now sent someone to check and remove it.

“If anyone finds needles, they should contact us as soon as possible on 01946 598300 with an exact location.”

The council offers the following advice about find a needle: "Discarded hypodermic needles and syringes are extremely dangerous and could cause injury or infection. Immediately contact your doctor or nearest accident and emergency department for medical advice and treatment if you suffer an injury from a discarded needle."