A £30M budget cut could leave modern day Dorset being policed by officer numbers of the 1980s, campaigners are warning.

Dorset Police Federation (DPF) has joined the ‘Cuts Have Consequences’ campaign and is running a six week drive across the county highlighting the effects of budget cuts on Dorset Police and what that will mean to the tax-payer.

More than £20 million has been slashed from police budgets according to the campaign, with another £10m of cuts expected.

Dorset Police Federation has said it believes that with more cuts on the way, the force could be driven to a reactive style of policing.

The DPF says the number of police officers in Dorset has already 'plummeted' by 19 percent in the last five years because of spending cuts. That is one in five fewer officers going about their day-to-day duties.

“It is especially visible in rural areas, where there has been at least a 50 per cent reduction in safer neighbourhood officers on the beat,” a spokesman said, Tony Tester, chairman of the federation, said: “I fear the public don’t realise what they are about to lose. It is not only everyday contact with police officers that will be lost, there will also be a detrimental impact on crime prevention and proactive policing.”

Earlier this month it was announced that while there would be fewer cuts to Dorset Police’s front counter services, six are still set to close including Dorchester and Wareham.

Under original plans to save money, 12 out of 15 front counter offices in Dorset had been facing the axe in a bid to save £300,000 - the equivalent of six front line officers or ten Police Community Support Officers. The Federation also said that 280 police officer posts had been being cut since 2009.

Martyn Underhill was the first Police and Crime Commissioner to actively support the campaign. Earlier this month the Police and Crime Panel agreed to freeze the police precept and accept a a government grant of £574,000 for the coming financial year.

Speaking at the meeting Mr Underhill warned this year was the ‘calm before the storm’ before the next Parliament.

Speaking afterwards to the Echo about the campaign, Mr Underhill said: “[the campaign] shows the public in a really visual way what has happened and what could happen in the future and let’s not forget the Institute of Fiscal Studies are predicting 24 percent more cuts in the term of the next parliament, if that happens it will change the way we police in Dorset, particularly neighbourhood police, forever and it’s important the public know that.”

West Dorset MP Oliver Letwin said: "Dorset Police have done a fantastic job, contributing to a major fall in crime despite tight financial constraints. And there is much more that can be achieved through the more efficient use of shared resources with other services. But I shall also continue pressing for the grant system to recognise more fully the pressures on a small rural force like ours."

For more information go to the website dorset.polfed.org/cutshaveconsequences.