Unwanted and scrapped bikes stored in Sutton Police station are being sent to people in Africa.

More than 50 bikes - which ended up in the police station after being being stolen or recovered in the street - will be stripped down, repaired and restored before being sent to Africa where they will used by children to get to school, medical and agricultural workers to go about their business and farm workers to take goods to market.

The work on the bikes, including kid’s bikes and adult racing bikes, will be done by offenders serving community sentences, volunteer bike enthusiasts, children on work experience, mechanics and students.

A number of these bicycles are in poor and un-roadworthy condition and would have been destroyed.

Many of the bikes do not have any identifying marks for police to match them with their owners and therefore remain unclaimed. Instead, officers took the bikes to Colchester-based charity Re-cycle.

Sgt Andy De’Voreaux of Safer Transport Police said: “These bikes are of a low value and in poor condition and in need of some tender loving care.

“This charity provides that care - and makes them into fully functioning bikes that can make a real difference in improving people’s lives in Africa.”