A YORK community bobby has taken the fight against bogus callers and cheating tradesman to the doorstep of a city neighbourhood.

Pensioners and other vulnerable people in New Earswick were given an insight into the "tricks of the trade" for criminals who target householders.

Senior police officers place distraction burglaries, in which thieves con their way into someone's home and then steal their possessions, as among the most cowardly of crimes.

Cowboy tradesmen who charge high prices for sub-standard work, or take payment without doing any work at all, are often hard to trace, and police also want residents to help gather information about their activities.

Community officers are urging elderly people - who are often targeted - to say no to all kinds of doorstep callers and to inform the police immediately if they are suspicious of people offering services in their street.

PC Beckwith, who is responsible for New Earswick and Huntington, said: "These offenders are particularly despicable in that they target some of the most vulnerable people in our communities and steal from, or defraud them, within what they consider to be the safety of their own homes.

"While New Earswick is a relatively low crime area, residents cannot afford to be complacent when there is a chance that doorstep criminals may call.

"I hope that my presentation will give residents the skills and confidence to deal with doorstep callers safely, and from a more informed point of view."

The Doorstep Crime Awareness session at The Garth, White Rose Avenue, New Earswick, provided important information about criminals who may call at doors and gave advice on ways in which residents can deal with them.

Peter Giles, from the Joseph Rowntree Housing Trust, gave a short talk on how the group can help with home security devices to help increase doorstep safety.

Last year, the Evening Press joined forces with North Yorkshire County Council "doorstoppers" campaign, which aimed to raise awareness of the dangers on people's doorsteps and clamp down on crime.

Earlier this week burglar alarm salesman Paul Rawson, who subjected a York woman to a four-hour sales pitch, persuading her to withdraw £2,000 in cash from the bank to pay for an alarm, was jailed for nine months by a judge at Leeds Crown Court for making false statements.

Updated: 10:34 Friday, November 26, 2004