Police are advising farmers, churches and relevant businesses in Hadleigh and surrounding villages to stay vigilant to the issue of metal theft, as prices soar.

The call comes as copper prices increase and is driven by the combination of surging demand and a global copper deficit.

The increase in the price of copper is also driven by an increase in demand due to the recovery of the economy post covid, particularly as the construction industry gets back on its feet once again.

Business are also advised of the value of copper in cabling and associated thefts where multiple cable drums or large amounts of cable are stolen at a time.

Although Suffolk as a county, has not seen an increase in such thefts in recent weeks , businesses, farmers, churches and landowners are all advised to ensure they take necessary precautions to combat the potential for thieves to exploit the situation.

Sgt Brian Calver from the Suffolk Wildlife and Rural Crime Team said: "I'd suggest people conduct a review of their security of their assets and I'd advise that both new and scrap cable is stored out of site, and that cable is forensically marked so that it can be traced. In addition, where possible it is advised that valuable assets are covered by CCTV and adequate lighting.

"These offences often amount to tens of thousands of pounds of damage and loss but there's the hidden cost to the economy by way of the temporary loss of infrastructure and the inconvenience that comes with it."

For guidance on metal theft please read the below:

Farm security advice.

• Make your premises secure using gates, fencing and locks and don't leave any scrap materials lying around to tempt thieves

• Install vandal resistant 'dawn to dusk' sensored security lighting and consider installing CCTV

• Consider using a forensic property marking solution, such as SmartWater or SelectaDNA to security mark your property.