A total of 25 migrants, including three children, have been saved at sea by French rescuers.

Some were plucked from the water by a helicopter today while the rest made it to shore by themselves.

This is on top of a separate migrant incident on the British side involving 18 people.

The French maritime authority, préfecture maritime de la Manche et de la mer du Nord, were alerted at 4.05am local time (3.05am BST).

It received reports migrants in a semi-rigid craft were in difficulty 10km (6.2 miles) off Calais after an engine failure.

The group ended up stuck on a sandbank.

At 6.15am local time 12 migrants were winched up by helicopter and the other 13 made it to shore by themselves.

The maritime authority said that all were found to be safe and well and handed to French border police.

Meanwhile the UK Home Office says that at about 8am today Border Force was altertedto a small boat travelling across the Channel towards Britain.

A coastal patrol vessel intercepted it and 18 men were brought onto the CPV and taken to Dover.

All individuals in the group, which included two claimed minors, were medically assessed and found to be well, before being transferred to immigration officials to be interviewed.

They have presented themselves as Afghans, Syrians, Iranians, Iraqis and Kuwaiti Bidoons.

All this adds up to four incidents in three days, involving a total 103 people.

On Monday and yesterday 28 and 32 were picked at sea by the British Border Force and taken to Dover.

Over the past year there have been weekly, sometimes daily, attempts by migrants trying to reach the UK by crossing the Channel in small craft.

There have also been incidents at Kingsdown near Deal, Folkestone and Romney Marsh.

It is known that this year, up to July 22, there were 1.150 attempts by individuals to cross the Channel illegally.

About 725 people arrived in the UK and 425 were intercepted on the French side of the Channel.

These figures were given to the Home Affairs Committee that day by Sajid Javid in his last week as Home Secretary.

Committee member Rehman Chishti, who raised the question, said that in the 14 months to last February he understood that 939 people tried to cross the Channel illegally.

He added that in May this year 140 people tried to come to this country, a higher number than those who tried to come last November and December.

Mr Chishti, MP for Gillingham and Rainham, said that on June 1 there were about 74 separate incidents involving 74 people.

Mr Javid was replaced as Home Secretary Priti Patel on July 24 when Boris Johnson became Prime Minister.

Read more: All the latest news from Dover