A secondary school's pioneering project to tackle truancy has been an overwhelming success, according to the community.

The scheme to clamp down on class dodgers at Immanuel Community College in Thackley, Bradford, was introduced after problems were highlighted at a residents meeting.

Villagers claimed pupils at the state-of-the art school were causing misery by running amok, throwing litter and abusing residents. After a public meeting, attended by the police, residents and head teacher Alan Hall, PC Paul Harkin, schools liaison officer, set up truancy patrols.

The patrols started in November and proved a success with an amazing 40 pupils found playing truant in two days.

The pupils were taken to Idle YMCA and their parents were asked to attend along with education authority social workers and careers guidance.

Constable Harkin said: "We give them advice in front of parents and they have a 15-minute counselling session with social workers and we take them back into school.

"At the beginning of October residents were vociferous in their objections to the school and the meeting was packed but at the last meeting there were only about five members of the public."

He added: "Now the kids are staying in school and behaving themselves.

''The school is working in partnership with us and the community."

John Wills, secretary of Idle Residents' Association, said: "It was apparent at our last meeting that the situation was a lot better than some months ago.

"The children have been behaving themselves and Mr Hall has been very good to come up here and get things sorted out.

"The teachers at Immanuel have also attended these meetings to get to the bottom of this trouble and it seems to have worked."

Today the school's deputy head teacher, Janet Inglis, said they were pleased to work with a number of schools on the anti-truancy initiative.

She said: "The residents are pleased with the way the patrols have gone but I want to stress that pupils from a number of schools were picked up, not just our own.

"We have also done a lot of follow-up work with the pupils and there has been a marked improvement in their behaviour. The initiative has had a big impact on the problems that the community were experiencing, so yes, the scheme has been a big success."

The situation will now be monitored and a further meeting held on April 15.