A group of loose horses gave police the runaround after being spotted trotting through traffic.

An off-duty police community support officer was driving to work on Saturday morning when he came across four horses and a foal wandering towards a busy road in Woodmansterne.

He called for back-up and six police officers arrived at 6.30am to find the animals making their way from Clifton Road into Bramley Avenue, near Woodmansterne train station.

Constable Jose Fernandez marshalled the horses while colleague Ger Geehan used a police car to block the creatures path and encourage them to turn around.

Other officers helped to keep the horses away from passing vehicles.

It took two hours for the officers to corral the animals into the safety of a cul-de-sac at the north end of Grove Lane, where they waited until an animal charity arrived to provide assistance.

PC Joe O’Toole was praised by his colleagues for his "horse-whispering" skills after keeping the five animals calm before they were loaded into horse boxes and checked by a vet.

PC Geehan said: “For a time it felt like we were in a Wild West film running around the streets after horses.

"Although the horses were running around, we managed to keep up with them.

“It’s the closest I have ever been to horses.”

All the horses were found to be fit and healthy.

Police are now appealing to to find their owner, which is asked to call Sutton police station on 101.

Did you see the loose horses? Call the news desk on 0208 722 6363.