NORTH Yorkshire Police is looking for children to take on a special role working with its officers.

The force is recruiting for its volunteer police cadet units in York, Malton and elsewhere in the county.

On its Facebook page, the force says the units offer cadets the chance to "have fun, get involved in exciting experiences, and learn about policing"

Cadets attend meetings for two hours a week during term time and are issued with a cadet police uniform.

They have visits from police dog, traffic police and crime scene investigations units as well as learning about policing duties, skills and basic law and doing physical activities and drills.

Cadets are aged 13 to 18 and start with initial training before attending a presentation meeting when they take the cadets' oath in front of families and friends.

As well as the weekly meetings, cadets assist with local community events such as fairs, town shows, carnivals and other local events, work with the local Neighbourhood Policing Teams doing leaflet drops, crime prevention initiatives, community safety events and street surveys and help as role-play volunteers in the training of student police officers and special constables.

Applications are now open and close on May 17.