A Bradford building firm has opened the eyes of thousands of children about the dangers of playing on building sites.

Construction giant Totty created a mock building site to allow youngsters to witness first hand the various dangers hidden within it.

The specially constructed site contained scaffolding towers, cement mixers, cherry pickers and bottles of unidentified dangerous liquids.

And more than 4,000 children visited it when it went on display as part of the Countryside Show at the Yorkshire Show Ground in Harrogate.

Totty's demonstration area was manned by staff from the Health and Safety Executive (HSE), which has posted repeated warnings about the dangers contained on building sites.

It is hoped youngsters will begin to heed the warnings about trespassing in prohibited areas in the run-up to the long summer holidays.

Children were able to walk around the site, spot dangers, watch videos, read leaflets and listen to talks. They were encouraged to gather information on a variety of safety issues ranging from staying safe on agricultural land to heavy plant machinery.

Dave Resendez, group health and safety advisor at Totty, said the Bradford-based firm took its responsibilities towards health and safety on its sites seriously.

Figures from the HSE revealed hundreds of children are injured each year while trespassing on building sites, railways and other dangerous places.

"We really want to help the HSE communicate the message that building sites are dangerous places and demonstrate that safety is a priority for Totty," said Mr Resendez.

"Injuries to members of the public can be avoided if people take a moment to think about the dangers that surround them.

"By constructing the stand at the Yorkshire Showground and by holding the competition we hope we have been able to teach children not to go anywhere near building sites, and prevent accidents."

Totty, which was formed in 1864 and has its headquarters at Chain Bar, Bradford, is part of the national Propencity Ltd group, which has an annual turnover of £230 million.