COUNCIL officials are appealing for volunteers to help look after a Hartlepool cemetery.

Hartlepool Borough Council is hoping to launch a Friends of Stranton Cemetery group as part of a campaign to improve security at the site.

More than 2,500 people signed a petition calling for action to be taken after sentimental items were taken from four-year-old Taylor Stallard's grave in Stranton Cemetery..

The youngster died last year after a life-long fight against a string of conditions, including having no immune system and chronic lung disease.

A flowerpot shaped as an Alice in Wonderland-style teapot and orange lilies, which had been placed by the graveside to mark what would have been her fifth birthday, were stolen last June from the council-run cemetery.

The petition calling for action was presented to a meeting of the full council where it received unanimous backing from councillors.

As a result, a special group of council officers and other representatives was set up to explore the options for improving security at the cemetery.

The creation of a friends group was one idea along with the installation of CCTV cameras, co-ordination of patrols between the council's security contractors and neighbourhood policing teams and increased surveillance by cemetery staff and other council employees.

Sue McBride, Hartlepool Borough Council's neighbourhood development officer for the south of the town, said: "I would urge people who are keen to get involved to contact me to register their interest and if enough people come forward we could perhaps hold a public meeting to discuss the way forward."

For more information call 01429-523075.