A LARGE amount of alcohol has been seized from a group of school leavers after officers were alerted by a member of the public.

The year 11 students from Hurworth School were drinking on the riverbank to celebrate the end of the school year at Broken Scar, in Darlington, when they were stopped by police and PCSOs.

A police spokeswoman said officers were concerned to hear that some of the youths, aged between 15 and 16, had been bought the alcohol by their parents for the occasion.

She added: “At this time of year, police are aware of the possibility of leavers from secondary schools across the town engaging in similar activities.

“We also know where young people tend to congregate, and as part of our Summer Nights campaign, we will be conducting StaySafe operations over the coming weeks to bring young people who are drinking under-age to a place of safety, and we will confiscate any alcohol we find them with.”

Parents have been asked to by aware of what their teenagers are doing on “school leavers night”.