Children climbing on roofs, dangerous off-road bikers and arson attacks reported on Knottingley estate

Officers from the West Yorkshire Police Neighbourhood Policing Team said they had been called out to a series of incidents on the Warwick Estate involving young people.

And firefighters from Pontefract Station have dealt several fires in the area, suspected to have been started by youngsters.

Police said they were told by the caretaker of Simpson's Lane Academy that children had been on the roof, running and jumping between buildings on April 3.

Officers went to the school, on Sycamore Avenue in the Warwick Estate, and have since urged parents to advise their children of the dangers involved.

Inspector Paul Sullivan said four children under the age of 10 were involved.

He said: "I cannot stress the dangers of children accessing and running around on the roofs of buildings.

"It is a well reported issue that most fatalities are the result of falls from over 4ft.

"We have identified the children involved in climbing onto the roof of the local school and will be speaking with them and parents in due course."

Firefighters said they had been called out to several incidents involving rubbish being dumped and set on fire.

A spokeswoman said there had been about 10 arson attacks in the area during the past month.

Nuisance off-road bikers have also been causing problems.

Police said on April 4, they received reports of youths, with their faces covered, riding motorbikes "in a dangerous and inconsiderate manner".

And on Sunday, a warning was issued to a 14-year-old girl for riding a motorbike anti-socially.

Inspector Sullivan said a DNA spray had also recently been used to identify three youths, under the age of 16, on a bike around Hill Top.

He said: "We continue to take calls around illegal use of motorbikes and this spring we are increasing the number of police off road riders by 66 per cent following funding provided by Wakefield District Housing.

"Together with successful use of offender tagging, we will seize more illegal bikes, arrest offenders and ultimately work towards making our area a safe place to live work and socialise."