Police officers are going back on the beat throughout Oxfordshire as the force recruits more civilians to work in police stations.

Nearly 400 extra officers across the Thames Valley Police region -- including 100 new recruits -- could be tackling crime on the streets during the next financial year.

The force is to spend £5.83m recruiting civilians to roles which do not require police powers, in a move described as "civilianisation".

The police authority believes it can replace between 240 and 290 roles currently occupied by trained and experienced officers with civilian staff.

But the Police Federation, the union for rank and file police officers, has criticised the level of consultation on the changes and warned some officers are alarmed by the prospect of being put back on the beat.

The number of extra officers for Oxfordshire has not yet been decided.

But Bill Bradshaw, Oxfordshire County Council's representative on the police authority, said the county's share would probably be 90 -- with about 40 officers policing Oxford's streets.

It will be up to Oxfordshire's area commanders to identify jobs they feel could be done by civilians.

Police will also be freed up by a decision to employ an outside contractor to look after prisoners in police custody cells.

The decisions were made at a meeting of Thames Valley Police Authority on Friday which agreed a budget of £259.25m for 2002/3.

Chairman of the police authority, Penny Elvin, said: "This should go some way to meeting the wishes of the general public, as evidenced through consultation, to see a higher level of visible policing through the force area.

"The change will be a gradual one over the coming 12 months. However, we are hopeful that by this time next year people will see a real difference on the streets."

Pc Wally Cox, deputy secretary of Thames Valley Police Federation, warned it would add to officers' stress if the shake-up was poorly managed.

He said: "If they get it wrong, officers are going to start going off sick.

"It's going to cause a lot of people a lot of concern when they see their own jobs coming up for civilianisation.

"A fully fit officer who has been away from the street for a long time will find it difficult to return. The force will have to put time and effort into the retraining of officers to build up their confidence."

Some officers had intentionally worked their way up into roles likely to go to civilians, while others were not well enough for front-line duties, he added.

Chief Constable of Thames Valley Police, Peter Neyroud, told Friday's meeting that West Mercia police had contracted out dealing with prisoners in custody and this had proved a success. The Police Federation also welcomed this part of the shake-up.

To pay for the extra officers, an extra £9 a year will be added to the average Band D council tax bill.

The police authority's budget includes money for 97 additional civilian posts in areas such as scenes of crime investigation, fingerprint identification and crime analysis.