THOUSANDS of Hambleton homes will soon have their own life-saving message in a bottle.

Residents will be encouraged to conceal emergency information inside a special container stored in the fridge for safe keeping to help the emergency services to carry out their job.

Hambleton Community Safety Partnership manager Chris Fields said: "There is concern among many people about what would happen if they fell victim to an unexpected emergency while on their own.

"Who would tell the emergency services what medication they take, what they are allergic to and what time the children need collecting from school.

A small, clearly-labelled waterproof plastic bottle is kept in the fridge containing a sheet of vital information - contact numbers for next of kin, doctors, drugs, long-term conditions and allergies. A label is then stuck to the outside of the fridge door as well as on the inside of the main access door to the house signalling its presence.

Ms Fields said: "We chose the fridge because not only is it easy to find in most homes, in the event of a fire it is the one item which is likely to survive the longest."

To register for the Message in a Bottle scheme call community safety officers Alison Oldfield on (01609) 767243 or Susan Moon on (01609) 767280.

"The Message in a Bottle scheme prevents unnecessary and potentially life threatening delays," said Ms Fields.