POLICE are appealing for information after two houses were burgled in villages near to Wantage last week.

In the first incident, thieves smashed a first-floor window of a house in New Road, Childrey, sometime between 11am on Thursday, April 19, and 6pm on Friday, April 20.

The bedroom of the house was searched and jewellery stolen but no other rooms were entered.

In the second burglary, the ground floor window of a house in Kingston Lisle was smashed. The thieves searched the dining room but left without taking anything.

PC Stephen Knight, of the Priority Crime Team, said: "These two locations are small villages next to each other on the outskirts of Wantage and as the burglaries are so similar we believe they are linked.

"On both occasions it seems the thieves may have been disturbed by an alarm going off as they have fled without carrying out full searches of the properties.

"In the first burglary, they must have had a ladder to enable them to break a first floor window. It is also likely they had a vehicle as this is a rural area and they would have been conspicuous without one.

"I would urge anyone who saw any suspicious vehicles or people in the villages and surrounding area on the day in question to contact me via the Police Enquiry Centre on 0845 8 505 505."

If you do not want to speak to police or leave your name, call the charity Crimestoppers on 0800 555 111.