FRESH warnings have been issued after a spate of attempted distraction raids at the homes of vulnerable old folk around the district.

But more and more people are turning uninvited callers away at the doorstep since the launch of the joint "Keep 'Em Out" campaign, involving police, the Shuttle/Times and News, district and county councils, Wyre Forest Community Housing and Neighbourhood Watch.

In an incident on Sunday a man and woman got into the home of a woman in her late 80s in Cedar Close, Stourport, but made off empty-handed.

They first asked to borrow a pencil and then asked the resident if she could change a £20 note. Police inquiries later revealed the pair had called at the homes of other older people in the area.

They were both white and in their late teens to early 20s. The woman wore a cream cardigan and navy blue mid-shin length trousers and had brown hair in plaits and a cold sore on her top lip.

Police have also appealed for residents to be on the lookout for two men in a white van with the word"Landscaping" on the side who are thought to be bogus roof and driveway workers. In an incident a fortnight ago, an elderly man gave the men - one with an Irish accent - £40 to do some work on his Kidderminster home but they disappeared soon after.

They also called at another house where the resident turned them away.

Anyone with information about either incident should contact Kidderminster Police by calling 08457 444 888.