A NEW team of cycling police officers have taken to the streets of North Yorkshire.

The Cycle Response Team began work earlier this month but were officially launched yesterday, and will be used throughout the force area to help with searches for missing or wanted people.

The team, which is based at Clifton Moor Police Station and made up of a sergeant and seven police constables, will also patrol locally to offer high-visibility reassurance to the public, and have stopped and searched 21 people in York and Scarborough so far, resulting in five cannabis warnings and five arrests for suspicion of cycle theft, drugs possession, driving while disqualified, drugs possession and burglary.

Chief Constable Dave Jones said: "I am confident that they will be a real asset. They will give us the capability to respond really quickly and effectively to developing situations and offer a presence and visibility which will be just as reassuring for our communities as it is unnerving for criminals.

"There was some really good feedback from residents and businesses on Sunday when they carried out some reassurance patrols in Scarborough on what was an extremely busy weekend. They will have a key role in building on the good relationships we already have with our communities and have already gathered some good community intelligence."

Follow the team on Twitter @NYPCycleTeam or go to northyorkshire.police.uk/cycleresponseteam