He's the latest recruit in the fight against crime and one which police hope will help Hampshire's children stay safe.

A book telling stories about an imaginary policeman called PC Fudgecake has been produced by one real Hampshire policeman, who decided he could do more to protect youngsters while at the same time build bridges between them and police.

The idea behind the books is simple: tell children funny and interesting stories that also teach them important lessons about everything from avoiding strangers to not walking on frozen lakes.

The series has been put together by PC Bill Williams with the help of illustrator and teaching assistant Karen Drewell and staff from the Barton Stacey School in Winchester.

Bill, who was born and brought up in Southamp-ton, said: "I decided to develop the PC Fudgecake stories with two main aims: firstly to help support schools and parents by providing material that will educate young children in ways of keeping safe, secondly to introduce children to the various elements of modern policing."

To see more of PC Fudgecake, see today's Southern Daily Echo.