POLICE have put out a summer holiday alert after youngsters were seen dicing with death on railway lines near York.

But a special pack being prepared by Railtrack to help teachers educate children on the dangers will not be available until July 18 - a matter of days before schools finish for the summer holidays.

British Transport Police officers are warning youngsters not to risk the perils of trespassing on train tracks after they were called to an incident near Skelton.

They are calling on the public to help by alerting them to any incidents they see on railway lines by using the freephone number 0800 405040.

PC Kevin Andrews said the driver of a high-speed train saw a group of four young boys putting stones on the track at Skelton Bridge, where the railway crosses the River Ouse between Skelton and Nether Poppleton.

Officers searched the area and spoke to some youngsters in the vicinity, although they could not be sure if they were the culprits.

PC Andrews said: "We would ask parents to consider where their children are playing at all times and we would also ask members of the public to call us if they see anything suspicious on the railway lines."

The warning comes after concerns by residents at Copmanthorpe that children as young as four are risking their lives by throwing objects at high voltage power lines and straying through a broken fence to play near tracks.

These scenes were reported in the Evening Press on Thursday after people said they had seen incidents alongside the London-Edinburgh high-speed line running through Copmanthorpe.

Terry Halder, a parish councillor, said he was concerned that incidents may escalate this weekend as hundreds of people visit the Copmanthorpe Carnival.

"It's only a matter of time before there is an accident. Copmanthorpe will be busy this weekend, but we have been assured that British Transport Police will be keeping an eye on this section of line."

Railtrack in York is launching a Schools in Partnership Pack at the end of July which is aimed at arming teachers with the rail safety message.

William Simms, a spokesman for Railtrack in York, said the packs would be issued to teachers on Tuesday, July 18.

"We realise that schools are breaking up around this time. But this is a long-term project and teachers will have the summer months to familiarise themselves with the information.

"We would have liked the packs to be out in advance of the summer months but this was not possible."