HUNDREDS of people turned out to greet a laughing Prince Charles as he spent a day in East Lancashire.

The heir to the throne travelled to Burnley and Nelson where he witnessed a range of projects from football in the community to regeneration.

And he seemed to enjoy his day, too, taking plenty of time out to have a laugh with the locals.

He kicked off his first official visit to Burnley for more than 20 years with a trip to Turf Moor to meet youngsters who have been taking part in an anti-racism initiative. As the former captain of his school's junior football team the Prince couldn't resist having a kickabout with local school pupils taking part in a School Citizenship Anti Racism in Football (SCARF) project.

He was also met by the High Sheriff of Lancashire and former England football captain Jimmy Armfield.

The Prince then made his way to Nelson where he visited Walton High School which runs a club called XLClub -- funded by the Prince's Trust -- to help youngsters in danger of dropping out of school.

Simina Kauser helps run the XL Club and introduced pupils to the Prince. She said: "It was a fantastic opportunity to meet somebody as important and honourable as the Prince."

The Prince of Wales was then met by cheering crowds as he arrived at Nelson Town Hall. He signed Pendle Council's book of condolence for the victims of the Asian earthquake before he made a speech to remind people about the need for help in Pakistan.

He then went to Whitefield, Nelson, where £2.2million has been invested in housing.

The Prince has taken a special interest in Whitefield and offered the services of his own design team, the Prince's Foundation for the Built Environment, which helped residents come up with a scheme to regenerate the area last year.

Finally he went to the headquarters of bakers WH Oddie Ltd in Scotland Road, Nelson, to help staff celebrate the company's 100th birthday. Greeted by managing director Bill Oddie he met long serving members of staff and helped cut the birthday cake as well as trying some of the bakery's specialities including a Pendle Pasty.