Railway enthusiasts are helping train bosses warn children about the dangers they face by playing on railway lines.

Skipton and District Railway Society members have built a special model which is to be used by Arriva Trains in a campaign to highlight the risks.

Latest statistics compiled by British Transport Police reveal there have been 130 incidents in the Bradford district so far this year of children trespassing on the lines or leaving obstacles.

One train was almost derailed after hitting debris left on the track at Laister-dyke, and two other trains came within inches of a serious accident when metal shelving was thrown on the Leeds-Bradford line close to Dick Lane road bridge.

The safety model is to be taken round schools, including the Bradford district, by Arriva's school liaison officer, Chris Leech. It is a three dimensional representation of a scene on the railway where children are trespassing.

Mr Leech believes it will be an invaluable teaching aid.

He said: "This is a superb tool that will help me realistically demonstrate to local children what kind of dangers they could face if they were to trespass on local railway lines and the potential consequences of their actions.

"The model is very well constructed and I have no doubt that it will play a major role in my programme of visits to schools."

Trevor Shaw, chairman of Skipton and District Railway Society said: "We make a lot of models, which means there are often materials going spare. We decided to put them together and make the model."

Inspector Cameron Young, of British Transport Police, said children as young as four or five had been spotted trespassing on the tracks and throwing stones and other objects at moving trains.

There were a number of hotspots in the Bradford area including Bowling, Laisterdyke and on stretches leaving Bradford Interchange and Forster Square stations. There had also been reports of incidents in Bingley, Shipley, Saltaire, Pudsey and Brighouse.

Anyone with information about children trespassing is asked to contact the British Transport Police hotline on 0800 405040.