A WARNING has been issued after an image spreading fake news about social gatherings began circulating on social media.

The image, which told people gatherings of up to 20 people would be permitted from the end of the month, started circulating on Twitter in recent days.

And now the Lancashire Resilience Forum - a collaborative body of local authorities, NHS organisations and emergency services - published a picture of the post to their social media pages.

The fake image, which has been widely circulated online, stated that from May 31 private gatherings of up to 20 people would be allowed within private homes.

However this is not the case and the government has yet to announce when such gatherings may be able to take place.

A spokesman for the forum said: "You may have seen this image being share on social media - it is false.

"Any changes to the lockdown measures will be announced through central government and we will continue to provide official guidance to you.

"Please only share content from trustworthy sources."