HOUSEHOLDERS and motorists have been warned to be on their guard after a gang of thieves hit cars and homes.

Officers say the same people could be responsible for all the offences, with four houses and five cars broken into over a three-day period in Clayton-le-Moors.

Jewellery and other items, worth more than £800, were stolen from a house in Barnes Street between 11.45pm on Saturday and 10am Sunday.

They broke a foot-square glass pane on a wooden door to get into the house, before forcing an inner door and ransacking the house.

Among the items stolen were a 14-carat yellow gold chain and crucifix, worth £600, a gent's gold signet ring, £100, gent's yellow gold ring with onyx, £100, and a red and silver Nokia mobile phone in box.

Thieves broke the panel in the back door of a house in nearby Lancaster Drive during another incident between 10am and 1.30pm on Sunday, before ransacking the house.

Police say the intruders may have been disturbed by the occupiers calling the police. After stealing a pack of bacon and some chocolate they escaped through the back garden.

Three days earlier, on Thursday, a house in Chequers was targeted and property worth more than £700 stolen.

This time the intruders got in through a bedroom window. They ransacked the house and stole a PlayStation 2, 13 PS2 games and five DVDs, £300, a black leather handbag, a family allowance book, bank book, driving licence, an 18-in gold chain with gold eagle pendant, worth £130 and £10 cash.

But thieves failed to get into St Mary's presbytery, Devonshire Drive, when they struck between 6.30pm on Thursday and 8.50am the next day. Police say people should make sure doors and windows are locked.

Motorists were also hit over the same period. In one incident thieves stole electrical testing equipment and tools worth £600, from an estate car in Fernlea Drive, between 9pm on Friday and 9am the next day. Thy broke the glass in the rear nearside window and grabbed a black suitcase containing the equipment.

A £10 three-in-one torch was the haul from a green Vauxhall Corsa broken into between 11.30pm on Friday and 6am on Saturday. This time the thieves broke the front offside window of the car, in Sparth Road.

The same method of entry was used on the other three cars targeted on the same night. Damage estimated at £30 each was caused to two cars broken into on Brantwood, Clayton-le-Moors, after thieves broke the offside front windows of a Ford Escort and a Vauxhall Cavalier.

Nothing was stolen from a V-registered Ford Focus estate when thieves broke into the silver car between 9pm on Friday and 8.45am the following day.

A police spokesman said: "There are both burglars and car criminals active in Clayton-le-Moors at this time, and they may or may not be the same people."

Witnesses to any of the offences or anyone with any information should call Great Harwood Police on 01254 353334 or Crimestoppers on 0800 555111.