Firefighters have teamed up with police in an attempt to reduce arson attacks across the county.

Former policeman Steve Baker has been given the role of arson reduction officer and is keen to clampdown on firebugs.

He will work with fire investigators to prevent fire attacks like the one on pensioner Alick Elithorn's shed last month.

Mr Elithorn, 86, was at home in Rose Hill, Oxford, when the shed was burned down in a suspected arson attack.

He said there was not much space between the shed and his house and if firefighters had not arrived quickly, it could have ended in tragedy.

Pete Cleary, fire service risk reduction manager, said Mr Baker would be looking into small fires that spread to larger buildings as well as car fires.

He said: "We are going to be looking at car fires, high-volume, small-scale fires, and skip fires that spread to nearby community centres.

"These are linked to antisocial behaviour. You get hoodies who go to start bin fires, think 'no-one's stopped me', then set fire to a skip.

"Steve is an ex-police officer and he will enable us to communicate better with the police in terms of fire prevention, reduction and investigation."

Mr Baker's job will run for two years and will involve highlighting arson hotspots, crime trends and identifying prevention, reduction and enforcement opportunities.

Oxfordshire's Chief Fire Officer John Parry said: "Arson has a huge financial cost but the impact on local communities is immense.

"The addition of a dedicated police resource to work as part of a team with the fire and rescue services is of tremendous value and will have a direct impact in the results that we can achieve.

"While we work closely with the police in many areas, this is the first time that we have had the advantage of working alongside a former police officer with so much experience. He will be an enormous asset."

Assistant Chief Constable Nick Gargan, of Thames Valley Police, said: "This new role should help to strengthen further the partnership we have with the three fire and rescue services.

"Arson is a dangerous crime and the work that Steve will be doing is vital to reduce this type of offence."

Mr Baker has worked as a police partnership manager in Buckinghamshire and was an inspector in charge of Aylesbury.