MOUNTED police officers are due to trot into town this week in an effort to stamp out crime in Beaconsfield.

The mounted unit will be on patrol to raise the profile of policing in the area, tackling everything from illegal parking to burglaries.

Sergeant Gerry Lister, of Beaconsfield Police Station, said: "They can do in half-an-hour what it takes me two weeks to do. I can walk up and down the street and few people will notice me. People will notice the horses within minutes."

This is the second time horses have been used in the town. They were stabled there in March owing to the foot and mouth crisis.

Sgt Lister has warned that with the high visibility policing will come a crackdown on offences such as illegal parking, not wearing seatbelts and displaying invalid tax discs.

He said: "We are out there to prevent crime but as a side issue from that we can't ignore the smaller offences."