A CAMPAIGN to recruit more foster care families in England's largest county is taking to the road.

A vintage bus is being brought into service to promote the Help Us Raise 100 Smiles campaign in North Yorkshire.

The bus will be festooned with banners and balloons to promote Foster Care Fortnight and Fostering North Yorkshire.

The aim of the campaign is to recruit 100 extra foster care families in the county over the next three years.

People who are interested in becoming foster carers will be able to talk to fostering staff from the county council and to foster carers.

The bus will be in Northallerton High Street on Wednesday, from 11am to 3pm. The following day, an open-top bus will be in Scarborough, in the Morrisons car park in Dunslow Road, from 10am to 4pm.

Foster care staff will also be staging a promotional event at Knaresborough Fun Run tomorrow.

Child placement group manager John Heron said: "If a child needs to be brought into care or be looked after, we always try to keep them in their own locality so they can keep in touch with their family, friends, school and any leisure activities they are involved in. That's why we're looking for more and more foster carers right across North Yorkshire."