WILDLIFE rescuers saved a young fox who was trapped in a basement lightwell.

Trevor Weeks, of East Sussex Wildlife Rescue and Ambulance Service (WRAS), said it was a tricky operation in such a confined space.

The small fox had become stuck in the enclosed area in front of a house in Rugby Road, Brighton.

WRAS took the call for help and asked Brighton and Hove Wildlife Advice and Rescue Service (Wars) for assistance.

Trevor and colleague Kristy Sayer were joined by Lisa Barrow from Wars and together they decided to crawl through the basement window with a cage to retrieve the fox.

Trevor said: "This was far from easy and our cage only just fitted through."

He tried to guide the fox into the cage but he was reluctant and tried to climb up the walls. Trevor eventually managed to get him inside using a net.

The fox was then put into one of WRAS's ambulances.

As it was a busy time on the roads, they decided to hold on to the fox until it was a quieter and Lisa took him to her nearby home for the evening.

At around 11.30pm, when the roads were safer, she returned to set the animal free.

Lisa said: "The fox was pleased to be free and ran off down the pavement to find his family. This is the best part of volunteering in this line of work."

Trevor said the rescue, which happened on Friday, was "a good bit of team work between the two organisations and a positive outcome".