RESIDENTS in North Yorkshire can sign up to a free service which will see police share warnings and advice by text or email.

North Yorkshire Police's Community Messaging launched this week to alert residents to the latest crime notifications and community news in their neighbourhoods, helping to share messages and appeals quickly across a wide area.

The system is an upgrade to previous services, and is the biggest of its kind in the country - due to the size of the North Yorkshire Police patch. Users can also tailor their service for the types of message they receive, whether they receive them by phone, text or email, and specific locations which matter to them.

Superintendent Richard Anderson, of North Yorkshire Police, said: "Alongside our award-winning use of social media like Twitter and Facebook, North Yorkshire Community Messaging will further improve the flow of information between local communities and the police.

"The information and intelligence that we receive from members of the public can be absolutely crucial in preventing and detecting crime and anti-social behaviour, so the more people that join Community Messaging, the safer North Yorkshire will be."

Topics include crime and other police incidents, missing people and witness appeals, rural policing, anti-social behaviour, road safety, road closures and traffic updates, and invitations to public meetings.

Users can also register multiple locations, including home addresses, where their children go to school, where family members live, and their place of work.

All alerts through the new system, which will also be shared with all Neighbourhood Watch groups, are designed to be shared with friends and family, in an effort to help the community help the police.

Supt Anderson said: "The system is free to join and easy to use. Signing up will take less than five minutes, so I’d encourage everyone to visit nycm.co.uk and get started today."