A mums' army helping bring peace and order to the streets of Bradford is set to strengthen its role - with self-defence and negotiation training.

The Heaton mums revealed how they patrol the streets in the evening and confront anyone who appears to be up to no good.

Now they are preparing for the expert training to help with negotiation and self-defence skills should they get into difficult situations.

Ellizabeth Hellmich, line manager at the Millan Centre in Victor Street, and a Neighbourhood Watch co-ordinator, said the campaign had snowballed since the revelation of the 'mums' army' in the Telegraph & Argus.

"We had a fantastic response from lots of organisations, and the overwhelming feeling was that there are lots of people out there who also 'patrol' their areas, making sure that there is nothing untoward taking place," she said. "We decided that we should go one step further and make the patrolling more formal. Some of the mums who go out are very confrontational and approach drug dealers. We thought it best to get some sort of training to help with negotiation skills and how to act if caught in a dangerous situation."

The women are hoping to get a grant from the Neighbourhood Renewal Fund, and up to 150 will benefit from the training - aimed at increasing self-confidence and negotiation skills.

Sabiya Khan, a mother-of-three who lives in the area, said it was important they had some training.

She said: "It is about empowering citizens to take action themselves and change the situation. We are all worried about our area and this is one way of doing something about it. We are all very concerned about what happened in Bradford during the summer and want to ensure that it doesn't happen again."

Mrs Khan said training would enable more women to be proactive.

"This area has a very active Neighbourhood Watch already. Sometimes language is a barrier but the course will also be in mother tongue language so more women can be involved. It is important that we do this properly."

News of the street patrols even attracted attention from other parts of the country.

Chris Sewell, convener of the London-based Alliance for Peace, Justice and Human Dignity, said he was willing to return to Bradford to meet the mums' army.

He has also written to Cherie Blair asking her to join the weomen as they battle to keep the streets free from crime.

"A visit by Mrs Cherie Blair to Bradford to encourage the mums' army would be highly effective and valued," said Mr Sewell who studied Peace at Bradford University.

"Something like this is extremely positive and needs to be promoted at the highest level," he said.