Thieves broke into Middlesbrough council's teaching and learning centre on Sunday night.

The laptops were used by child workers and contained case files on children and their families.

The council said the information was password protected with some encryption and did not believe the data included any personal financial information.

'Further protection'

Cleveland Police are investigating the incident and are appealing for any witnesses.

Middlesbrough Council is deciding whether to inform any individuals whose data maybe on the laptops.

A spokesperson added: "In this instance, entry to the building was gained several storeys up and the criminals risked very serious injury in gaining access.

"We were already reviewing data security issues, which is done regularly as circumstances and technology change.

"We will feed this incident into the review to see what further protections might be available in addition to the building security improvements."