BURGLARS have broken into a traditional horse-drawn caravan and stolen a number of items.

Police are investigating an incident over the weekend in which thieves broke into two garages at the rear of a terraced property in the village of Holmside, just outside Burnhope, near Stanley.

Thieves struck at some time between 9pm on Saturday and 7.30am on Sunday.

Four custom-made caravan wheels worth about £2,000 were among the items taken, together with two Queen Ann stoves, chainsaws, wheelsaws and a wheelbarrow. The haul is believed to be worth about £6,000 in total.

The wheels, which were made specially for the caravan, are described as pale yellow gold, bearing a gold leaf pattern.

PC Stephanie McGinley said the thieves had first broken into a garage and taken a piece of specialist equipment to get into a second garage and remove items from the caravan inside.

She said: "The wheels and stoves are very rare items, and I would urge people to be alert and report the matter to the police if they are offered them for sale.

"The thieves must have needed a vehicle to transport this stolen property and we would like to hear from anyone who saw any suspicious activity in the Ashtree Terrace area on Saturday night or early on Sunday morning."

Anyone with information is asked to ring Consett police on 0845 6060 365, or anonymously through Crimestoppers on 0800 555 111.