A man fell from a building in Oxford and injured himself after being chased by police before climbing on to the roof of a house.

The man, believed to be in his late 20s or early 30s, was stopped by a Police Community Support Officer in Magdalen Road, East Oxford, at about 4.45pm today.

Police spokesman Toby Shergold said the man was aggressive and ran off. He got on to the roof of a house in Leopold Street and hurled bricks at police, before slipping and falling.

Student Nathan Monk, 23, said: "We heard all the commotion first and I saw a shadow move across the window. When I went to have a look, there was a guy chucking stuff around and shouting.

"I ran downstairs and told my housemates we needed to get out of the house right now and then the police moved us towards the end of the road. We saw him slip down the roof and fall down between two cars."

Police evacuated a dozen homes in the street, which they cordoned off between Hurst Street and St Mary's Road.

The man was taken to the John Radcliffe Hospital in handcuffs, with arm and chest injuries, which were not believed to be serious.