Gwynedd residents with medical conditions are being encouraged to join a scheme that could save time in an emergency.

Message in a Bottle is designed to keep crticial personal and medical information where the emergency services know to look for it.

The scheme, created by the Lions Clubs International British Isles, includes a form to record details such as allergies, health conditions, medication and emergency contacts.

All information is kept safely in a small bottle with a green cross on it in the fridge.

Households are also provided with green cross stickers to display inside the home, alerting the emergency services' attention to the presence of the bottle. If hospital treatment is required, the 'Message in a Bottle' can be transferred to hospital staff.

Locally, Cyngor Gwynedd has begun sending the bottles to residents who receive care or telecare services from the local authority.

Cllr Dilwyn Morgan, cabinet member for health and wellbeing, said: "The scheme is a simple, but very effective way, of ensuring that essential information is available to the emergency services."

"It can make a huge difference in an emergency and puts the minds of individuals and their care-givers at ease."

"I am very glad that we have received funding from the Health and Social Care Regional Integration Fund for such an important scheme, which will make a difference to the residents of Gwynedd and their families."

The bottles will also be available for free from libraries across the county and from the Siop Gwynedd sites in Caernarfon, Pwllheli and Dolgellau.

If you know someone who provides, or intends to provide, unpaid care to an adult or disabled child - whether for a member of their family, a partner or a friend - an ID card is available.

To register for the Carers Support Service, which provides a range of help and support for unpaid carers, visit the Cyngor Gwynedd website.