Staff at a Cannock town centre jewellery shop have begun a stocktake to see how much was stolen during a raid earlier this week.

Thieves escaped with a haul of jewellery after forcing the roller shutter doors at Chatwins Jewellers at around 4am on Thursday.

A member of staff said today: “We are going through all of the stock. It’s a bit of a paper trail. We couldn’t possibly give an estimation at the moment.”

The gang broke through the front door, setting off alarms, and smashed glass cabinets inside. They fled with gold and silver items.

CID officers and scenes of crime forensic teams have been at the shop, on the ground floor of the Cannock Shopping Centre, examining CCTV footage.

Police are appealing for any witnesses to call CID on 0300 123 4455.