BLACK Friday is fast approaching — and police have told supermarket bosses 'don't expect us to be your security'.

The annual one-day sales event, which originated in the US and first arrived in the UK in 2013, sees supermarkets and large stores offering discounts on electronic and other items.

But last year, it sparked a rise in a number of incidents where violence broke out amongst crowds of people rushing for bargains.

It is not yet known if Tesco in Valley Park Road, Prestwich, or Morrisons in Stanley Road, Whitefield, will participate in this year’s Black Friday on November 27.

However, police officers say they have visited local supermarkets in the run-up to the day to discuss it.

At a Prestwich Township Forum meeting at the Longfield Centre last Thursday, Sergeant Steven Wightman-love said: "We have visited several supermarkets to talk through their plans to judge the likelihood of any problems locally on the day.

"The message from our side was that they need to have adequate security if they are going to participate in Black Friday — we are not just going to be on call to deal with incidents that are unavoidable with adequate preparation."

Online sales from websites such as Amazon and ebay are also popular on Black Friday, but new research shows that, last year, a million people were conned into buying counterfeit items on the internet, such as faulty GhD hair straighteners.

Electrical Safety First, which carried out the study, is advising people to shop in person instead.