Schoolchildren across North Yorkshire are being put in "unacceptable" danger because of sub-standard school buses, police warned today.

Nine coaches and minibuses have been taken off the road after roadside checks uncovered a worrying catalogue of defects, including faulty brakes.

The most startling find was a seat in imminent danger of falling through a rusty floor.

Police said today they were "not at all pleased with the results", and issued a stark warning to bus operators that standards must be raised.

Among the faults discovered during Operation Coachman were:

Insecure seats

Badly-adjusted brakes

Faulty doors

And one driver was found to be falsely claiming unemployment benefit.

Detective Constable Julian Cook, who co-ordinated the operation, said: "While the majority of the county's school buses are safe, nine serious safety defects out of 65 vehicles checked is just not acceptable."

DC Cook said officers throughout North Yorkshire ran checks on school buses all year round, so the operation should not have come as a surprise to bus operators.

"My message to them is simple and straightforward - we will not accept anything but the highest standards of care for the county's children," he warned.

He added that further checks would continue to be carried out across the county.

The vehicles taken off the road will not be allowed back until the safety defects have been fixed and they have undergone a stringent examination by the Vehicle Inspectorate.

A further nine buses were given delayed prohibition orders, giving operators one week to fix safety defects, and 15 were found to have more minor defects.

Penalty tickets were also handed out to drivers of vehicles not displaying "school bus" signs.

All offending operators have been reported to the Traffic Commission.

Police checked 58 coaches, three minibuses and four taxis at schools in York, Harrogate, Ripon, Boroughbridge, Scarborough, Malton, Whitby and Kirkbymoorside between March 13 and yesterday.

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