A POLICE scheme teaching youngsters vital lessons in safety and potentially life-threatening situations is "going wild" - to highlight the growing problem of wildlife crime.

Crucial Crew is an initiative run by West Mercia Police in Herefordshire and targets children in their final year at primary school, looking at issues such as drug abuse, what to do in the event of a fire and home safety.

The event has been running this week in Bosbury, near Ledbury and has involved a new training module on the growing problem of wildlife crime.

It follows several cases in the county and nationwide - including the recent incident when a duck was beaten to death by a boy at Belmont Pool in Hereford.

More recently, police are investigating reports of youngsters setting light to hedgehogs in South Wye and cases of dogs being left in cars with no ventilation during hot weather.

"We wanted to offer the children something different this year and, with wildlife crime on the increase, we felt this was an ideal opportunity to discuss this emotive issue," said PC Keith Eyles from Ledbury police station.

Animals

"Most youngsters love animals, but unfortunately there are some who don't.

"What we want to try and achieve with the new module is to teach children the importance of respecting animals and their environment so they can go on and influence others to do the same."