PARENTS are being urged to check on their children's whereabouts after complaints about off-road bikers causing a nuisance.

Police in Darlington received numerous calls over the Easter holidays about youths riding motorbikes on wasteground around the town.

Many of the youths have not been wearing helmets and police are concerned that they could be injured or killed if they crash their machines.

Last weekend, a 17-year-old youth died in Stockton after he was thrown from a scooter he was riding on wasteground. He was not wearing a helmet.

Recently, Darlington police have received calls about youths on the Faverdale Industrial Estate, Firthmoor Crescent and Shelley Road.

A police spokesman said: "These bikes are dangerous machines but many are bought as toys.

"The public think we can respond to every single complaint about youths on bikes, but we have to prioritise our responses and cannot get straight out to these incidents.

"We would like the public to keep calling us about these riders and give us as much information as they can, such as where they have gone and who they might be.

"All this information can be used to help build up our intelligence of the problem. We would also appeal to parents to be aware what their children are doing."