A 16-year-old boy involved in a drugs supply ring had 42 bags of cocaine stashed in his bedroom, a court heard.

Burnley Crown Court was told that the drugs were brought to Omer Saddique, of Cromwell Street, Burnley, and that he cut them up and returned them.

Prosecutor David Macro said there was nothing which suggested Saddique was a dealer on the streets.

But police said he had a "role to play in the drugs ladder" and a drugs charity said it was "incredibly rare" for someone so young to be involved in the supply of drugs.

Saddique, who lives with his family, admitted possessing crack cocaine with intent to supply and possessing the drug.

The court heard that police raided Saddique's home in connection with a separate incident in March this year and found the Class A drugs.

He was 16 at the time but has now turned 17.

Judge Beverley Lunt warned Saddique he was facing jail.

She said: "You have pleaded guilty to two very serious offences. The most likely outcome is you will go to custody."

Speaking after the case, Detective Constable Julia Hodgson, from Burnley CID, said although the youngster was not selling the drugs directly, he had a "role to play within the drugs ladder".

She added: "His house, which he shares with his family, was searched and in his bedroom we seized a large quantity of crack cocaine and the paraphernalia which goes with it, including small plastic wraps and weighing scales.

"This was a great find for us. Obviously we've managed to do a little intelligence gathering as well looking into his background and his associates."

Also speaking after the case, Peter Stoker, director of the National Drug Prevention Alliance charity, said it was incredibly rare to find someone so young involved in the supply of cocaine, although he revealed children as young as nine in the UK were hooked on drugs.

He added: "While it's sad that someone so young as this has been found, in some ways it's good for him that he's been found so young.

"Hopefully the sentence will include a realistic education, not just about the effects of drugs but about the psychology surrounding the whole drug scene."

Judge Lunt bailed Saddique until August 29, to live at Cromwell Street.