Protests held to mark a year of work at Cuadrilla's fracking site

Police had urged motorists to avoid Preston New Road ahead of ‘planned gatherings’, with officers ‘expecting to see an increase in the numbers of campaigners.’

And Barbara Richardson from Frack Free Lancashire said more than 200 people marked the anniversary, many of whom were dressed in black for the ‘sombre occasion’, and some of whom had never protested before.

She said: “Public opposition to fracking is growing all the time. As more communities are impacted, the number of people opposed to it will increase.”

Lee Petts, from Lancashire For Shale, said fears about noise at the site have not been realised, and added: “When we get to the stage where the fracking is taking place and we have not had a repeat of the minor tremors of 2011, and air and water monitoring reveals there has been no environmental damage, people will start to become more accepting of it.”