Police this afternoon appealed for witnesses after a house was set alight in Wood Farm, Oxford, last night.

At 9.50pm, police were called to the property in Leiden Road by firefighters who were dealing with a fire they believed was suspicious. The house had been broken into and a fire started in the hallway.

The house was unoccupied at the time and no one was injured.

Det Con Matt Welsh of Oxford CID said: “The fire has led to substantial damage to the property. It is a family home and the fire will mean the family will not be able to return to their home for weeks to come.

“It appears this arson may have started out as a burglary, but for obvious reasons the family have not been able to enter the property yet and we can’t confirm if anything has been stolen or not.

“I’d like to appeal for anyone who saw or heard anything suspicious in the Leiden Road area last night to get in touch.”

Det Con Welsh can be contacted via the Police Enquiry Centre on 0845 8 505 505.

If you don’t want to talk to police and don’t want to leave your name, call the Crimestoppers charity anonymously on 0800 555 111.