THE boss of an elderly people's charity in Derbyshire says that a decision to switch off up to 40,000 of the county's street lights for part of the night could lead to an "increased feeling of isolation" among older people.

Age UK chief executive Katy Pugh made the comment after Derbyshire County Council yesterday confirmed it would turn off the lamps from midnight to 5.30am.

But Mrs Pugh said it was "probably one of the least damaging ways for the authority to save money".

The council said the move would cut £400,000 a year from its energy bill and reduce its annual carbon output by 2,000 tonnes.

It said the switch-off would take three or four years, starting in April and taking place in separate areas at different times.

There will be a four-week public consultation with each affected community, which may lead to "minor adjustment" of local schemes.

Another 900 of the county's 89,000 lamps will be switched off altogether.

Mrs Pugh said it was important that the council gave plenty of notice so people could add lighting outside their homes if necessary.

She said it could also be an issue for some carers who visit older people at night.

Mrs Pugh said: "Looking out of the window and not seeing any lights on could lead to a sense that people cannot go out even if they want to or a sense of fear."

Helen Clark, chairman of Erewash Labour Local Government Committee, has been campaigning against the switch-off on the grounds of risk to public safety.

She said the move, coupled with a reduction in police officers, was creating a "criminals' charter".

Mrs Clark said a Labour party survey of 311 people in Ockbrook and Borrowash found 91% disagreed with the plans.

But a council report on the switch-off said the survey did not provide respondents with enough background information about the proposals.

Councillor Simon Spencer, cabinet member for highways and transport, said the aim of the scheme was "not to plunge Derbyshire into darkness".

He said: "We'll look carefully at every area before we switch any lights off and there are many areas, town centres and high crime areas for example, where we won't switch any lights off at all."