BOBBIES will be given more time on the beat and ‘hot spots’ of crime are to be tackled after a landmark policing review.

Thames Valley Police Chief Constable Francis Habgood and Police and Crime Commissioner Anthony Stansfeld yesterday said local policing was a vital part of crime prevention.

But a review carried out by the force has found that neighbourhood officers have been left frustrated by a lack of technical support and time to carry out their duties.

It said local police teams should be protected from having to carry out other duties and be given new technology introduced to help them stay in touch with with residents.

There will also be new methods introduced to tackle crime hot spots, so that officers can be sent to patrol where they are most needed, and stronger links forged with Neighbourhood Watch groups.

As part of the changes, some 470 police community support officers (PCSOs) – introduced in 2002 – will be “refocused” away from duties taking them away from community issues.

They had been assigned to scene watches, road closures, detaining suspects, handing out fixed penalty notices and responding to “low-level emergencies”, the review claimed.

Mr Habgood said about 370 special constables – volunteer trained police officers – who were carrying out neighbourhood roles would also be “key” to the new approach.

The overhaul comes as the force grapples with how it will save almost £22m by 2017-18, with further budget cuts expected after a Government spending review.

Yesterday Mr Habgood told a police and crime commissioner meeting: “There is a debate going on nationally about whether neighbourhood policing can be sustained.

“But it is about problem solving – not just on our own but with partners – and the work we have already done to tackle rural crime is a good example of that.

“At the moment we need to rebalance what the public sector takes responsibility for, and neighbourhood policing is absolutely core to that.”

His comments were backed by Mr Stansfeld, who afterwards told the Oxford Mail: “I regard it as a critical part of policing. This is about modernising it and making it more effective.”

There are 108 areas classed as “neighbourhoods” by Thames Valley Police, with 27 based in Oxfordshire.

Neighbourhood police teams are led by a senior officer and include PCSOs, special constables and other volunteers.

They are designed to tackle ongoing local issues such as antisocial behaviour, and the review carried out by the force said they also had a role to play in preventing radicalisation, serious and organised crime, as well as cybercrime.

It said this could be achieved through “interventions” made by teams, with officers spotting “warning signs” when dealing with vulnerable members of the community and putting them in touch with social services or other agencies. There are also plans to boost recruitment of community volunteers and hold “have your say” meetings online on websites such as Twitter.

The force said the changes would not add extra costs to its approved budget, but Mr Stansfeld said future spending would depend on the outcome of the Government’s autumn spending review.

Oxford LPA commander Supt Christian Bunt, who is responsible for neighbourhood policing in Oxford, said “have your say” meetings at community centres were often poorly attended but consulting online would help involve more people, including the young.

Mr Bunt added: “The world has moved on over the years and I am actually quite excited about these changes.

“There has also been ‘mission creep’ in terms of what PCSOs are dealing with and so I want them back out there, dealing with the issues they were created for.”

The review also highlighted new tracking technologies used by other areas, which allowed forces to track where officers were called to most and identify hot spots.

It recommended the new technology be tested in the Thames Valley after the results of a pilot in London were made public.