A teenager has been jailed after he set fire to a house and bins in Stoke-on-Trent.

Scott Shaw, 19, of Longton, was sentenced to three-years-and-four-months in a young offenders institution at Stoke-on-Trent Crown Court on Tuesday (10 March) after he admitted arson and arson with recklessness as to whether life was endangered.

Detective Constable Andrew Percy, of CID, led the investigation. He said: "Shaw put multiple people at risk of serious harm by setting two deliberate fires in one week last year. 

"He showed no regard for the consequences of his actions, but I hope this sentence shows that we will take robust action against those who set fires in Stoke-on-Trent and wider Staffordshire."

It comes after the 19-year-old knocked on the door of a house on Albert Street and asked the person inside to call the fire service due to a nearby bin fire in August last year.

Officers attended the scene alongside colleagues from Staffordshire Fire and Rescue Service, where the fire was extinguished and nobody was reported injured.

Shaw then remained at the scene and told neighbours that he had seen the fire being set and had chased away three unknown offenders.

In the same week, officers and firefighters were called to a house fire on Plant Street in Longton, where one man suffered minor burns.

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Officers investigated CCTV footage which showed the fire being started, and firefighters at the scene said they had recently spoken to the suspect nearby.

Shaw was arrested and when he was interviewed in custody he admitted to starting the fires but said he did not know why.

Watch Manager Gareth Lewis, from Staffordshire Fire and Rescue service, said: "Thankfully, the fire had not affected the gas pipe connecting the garage to a house, otherwise the fire would have been catastrophic.

"These deliberate fires took place at a time when we were experiencing increased demand across Staffordshire due to the warm weather, so took valuable resources away from other incidents.

"I am glad that Shaw has been jailed for his reckless actions."