Preston households have been targeted by scammers, right, the Scambuster Stan character used by trading standards Pic: Thomas Hawk

Prestonians are being warned about a potential phone scam by fraudsters claiming to work for the city council.

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An official alert has been issued by Preston City Council who said they had been made aware of the telephone calls.

A spokesman for the city council said: “They will either be trying to obtain your personal data; or will be attempting to scam you about some form of bogus council tax discount. These people are not from Preston City Council so please hang up immediately.”

Lancashire County Council’s trading standards team, who run the Scambuster Stan page, have also issued an alert about fake callers pretending to be the city council.

The calls offer Good Citizen Grants ranging from £3,000 to £5,000.

A lot of the calls are coming from 020, originating the call comes from London.

A post on the Scambuster page said: “There is no grant folks, as ever its just a scam call in the hope that offering this cash incentive will make you divulge your banking details.”

How to know it is a real call from the council?
When you receive a call from Preston City Council we will verify who we are and will have access to information about you such as your name and address or council tax account number for example. Our officers will provide this information to you and will check it with you before proceeding.

Have you been targeted?
You’re urged to contact Action Fraud and report the incident via their online reporting tool

How can I stop fake calls?
1) Register with the Telephone Preference Scheme
2) Block the number if available through your phone or mobile provider
3) or perhaps purchase a call blocker