Police in south Oxfordshire are appealing to people living in Didcot to help keep their town drug free.

Senior officers have warned that Didcot's heroin problem will not disappear overnight and say they need help in their battle to clean up the town.

Last week 11 people were locked up for a total of more than 40 years for their part in the trade that brings misery to many.

Oxford Crown Court heard that following Operation Meerkat, during which undercover officer infiltrated the Didcot's drug scene, addicts were unable to get heroin for some time.

Supt Jill Simpson, South Oxfordshire area commander, praised the officers involved but warned new dealers could move in to exploit the gap in heroin supply.

She said: "People addicted to heroin will look for other people to supply them and they may have to travel further afield. The moment there is a gap, people will seek to exploit it.

"You have to reduce the need and the profitability. If we can help divert people and their addictions we reduce the ability for it to pay."

Operation Meerkat, sparked by the town's high number of addicts, has had an immediate effect on heroin supply and drug-related crime including burglary, robbery and car crime.

But Supt Simpson said heroin arrests were still being made and information from the public was vital to the ongoing fight against the drug.

She said: "This was a very entrenched network. What we have now is people who are not as entrenched and we can deal with them.

"Part of it is that Didcot is a transport hub. It is easy to come in and it is one of the biggest towns. The bigger the town the more you can hide.

"In Didcot you can isolate one entire network.

"Rather than pick off one or two dealers on the street, we can get in and get dealers one or two from the top of the chain."

She added: "I would hope seeing the faces of 11 people they know well and their sentences will make people think twice."