Women have been advised not to walk alone after a girl was sexually assaulted and a woman grabbed by a man in separate incidents near Oxford's John Radcliffe Hospital.

The 16-year-old girl was sexually assaulted by a man as she walked along Jack Straw's Lane, off Headley Way, Headington, at about 9pm on December 11.

At the same time on December 8, a woman in her 20s was walking in the hospital grounds, near Osler Road, when a man grabbed her arm and asked her for a cigarette.

The men were both white and about 5ft 10ins tall, but police are not linking the incidents.

In the first, the man wore a baseball cap. The man who sexually assaulted the girl was about 20, of medium build and wore dark clothing. Dc Stuart Teesdale, of Oxford CID, said: "We are not linking the incidents at this stage but I advise people, especially women, to be alert when walking alone in the area. Always try and walk with a friend when it's dark."

Call Dc Teesdale via 08458 505505 or Crimestoppers on 0800 555111 with information.