FARMERS are living in fear of gangs of burglars who are travelling across the region to raid remote country premises, it has been claimed.

Over the past two months, thieves have broken into a number of properties in villages south of Northallerton, North Yorkshire, stealing farming equipment and machinery worth thousands of pounds.

Police are now planning to join forces with the farming community to combat the problem.

Detectives say organised gangs are travelling to North Yorkshire from Darlington and other areas of County Durham to carry out the raids.

One farmer, who asked not to be named for fear of reprisals, said: "There just seems to have been an absolute spate of robberies taking place at these farms.

"They are taking quad bikes and all the farmers are getting back in return is a criminal number to claim from the insurance."

He said premises in Great Smeaton, Hornby, Streetlam, Danby Wiske and the Cowtons had been targeted recently.

"People are just living in fear. It doesn't matter what sort of lock you have, they can just burn it off, and it's happening that much that it's out of control," he said.

A spokesman for North-allerton police said: "We are having quite a number of farm burglaries in this area.

"Over the past couple of months they have certainly been hitting them, mainly quad bikes and other heavy-duty sort of equipment.

"They have been taking vehicles away and we recently found two abandoned on the outskirts of Darlington."

A meeting between police and farmers is likely to take place in the near future to establish ways in which the groups can work together to defeat the thieves.