Police are appealing for information after an elderly man had thousands of pounds stolen from his home in Cirencester.

On Saturday, the man, who is in his seventies, was approached by a group of three people, two men and a woman, who were offering to jet-wash his drive for £100.

Minutes later they asked for payment and the man went inside to get the money.

After he had paid them the man was distracted by one of the men and the woman and it is believed that the second man went into the house.

When the three left the man discovered that £7,000 was missing from his bedroom.

Later on the same day, the same people returned to the property and let themselves in through an unlocked door.

The woman distracted the elderly man and the man went upstairs again and made an untidy search before leaving.

Nothing was stolen on that occasion and the man was not injured during these incidents.

PC Richie Webb said: "A vulnerable and trusting person has been targeted in his own home by three people who, it seems, were intent on stealing from him.

"This is despicable and I am appealing for help to try to identify the offenders.

"I would like to hear from anyone who was in the Woodlands Road area at the times of these incidents and saw any of these three people or their white van, or anyone who has been approached by them in similar circumstances.

"I would also like to remind people not to engage people to work for you unless you know that they are from a reputable and trusted business, and to make sure that your elderly and vulnerable family members or neighbours get this message.

"If you have any information please call 101 quoting incidents 198 or 398 of 21 March".

The woman is described as being white, in her early twenties with dark hair tied up. She was wearing jeans and a pink top.

One of the men was about 6ft tall, slim build and had hair which was cropped on top but longer at the sides; the other man was about 5ft 7ins, also slim and wearing jeans and an orange high visibility jacket.