Police in Gloucestershire are going undercover to stop abusive behaviour on some of the county's buses.

Schoolchildren on buses in Stroud are accused of terrorising fellow passengers by spitting at them and using foul language.

Plain-clothes policeman have now mounted a covert operation to stamp out the anti-social behaviour.

Neither the route nor the school can be identified, as police want the scheme to remain undetected.

Minority report

Bob Dore, operations manager at the bus company which helped set up the initiative, said some of the children's behaviour was "appalling".

"We do not expect them to sit with their arms folded on the seats of the bus.

"But what we are experiencing at the moment goes beyond what anyone would expect as being reasonable behaviour," he said.

Mr Dore stressed the culprits were a small minority, but that it was important to intervene before the situation deteriorated.

The scheme is a joint initiative between the school, the bus company and the local authorities.