A POLICE shake-up will see Darlington's beat officers moved from the town centre to the communities they serve.

The 40-strong beat team will be divided between four locations - Cockerton, the North Road area, west Darlington (probably Firthmoor or Skerne Park) and the town centre - where they have all been based over the past two years.

It is hoped the move will make the officers more accessible to the public and more efficient.

The community beat officers, who are responsible for a specific area of Darlington or the surrounding countryside, have been based in the Gladstone Street police centre for two years.

At the time, police chiefs thought basing the officers in the council's building would help them develop good links with other partners in the town. They say this has worked and it is now believed the officers can be moved back into the communities, while maintaining the good links they established.

The easiest move has been into the police station in Willow Road, Cockerton.

Over the past fortnight, one sergeant, six PCs and three police community support officers have been transferred into the Cockerton station.

The police and council are looking for suitable and affordable accommodation in the North Road and Firthmoor areas.

Chief Inspector Graham Hall said: "This is part of our drive to increase our level of contact with the community. We want to increase visibility and accessibility for the public."

He said it would be easier for beat bobbies to work with people in their local communities if they were based in the same proximity.

Inspector Sue Collingwood, of community policing, said: "At the moment, the officers get the bus or walk over to their beat area. There is nowhere for them to have their lunch and sit down with a cup of tea.

"What this means is that they are spending less time in the area they cover. So this should really help."

Bill Dixon, Darlington Borough Council's cabinet member for the community and public protection, said: "Much of the success of the council's uniformed wardens and the community beat teams has been because of their close contacts within the community.

"This redeployment of the beat teams will, I am sure, only serve to strengthen their community links."