WORK is expected to start early next year on a £20m building scheme for a police force crippled by financial problems.

Cleveland Police - struggling to recover from a £7.3m budget "black hole" - is building five stations and modernising custody suites.

A decision on which of the two bidders will be asked to work on the project will be made in July, and construction should start next February and end in the summer of 2006.

Money for the bulk of the building programme is coming from the Home Office and a Private Finance Initiative (pfi), but a "town station" in Middlesbrough will be funded by the force.

The scheme includes new headquarters for Middlesbrough and Langbaurgh, community police stations in Middlesbrough, South Bank and Redcar, a refurbished custody suite in Hartlepool and a new 50-cell custody suite in Middlesbrough.

Cleveland Police Authority vice-chairman Ted Cox said: "We met recently with the Home Office to update them on the progress we have made and next week we will be inviting the two companies to submit their best and final offers.

"Cleveland is leading the way in using the PFI route to deliver the scale and quality of facilities needed to meet modern policing needs and provide the right services in the right place to our local communities."

The force was plunged into its latest crisis in February when the budget deficit was revealed by Middlesbrough Mayor Ray Mallon.

It led to calls for the resignation of Chief Constable Sean Price and police authority chairman, Councillor Ken Walker.

Coun Walker has since lost the support of his Labour group colleagues on Middlesbrough Council and was not put forward as a candidate for the authority. He will be formally replaced at a meeting in July.