THE head of Dorset Police has backed his officers use of social media, as he takes to Twitter to update followers on his own work.

Chief Constable James Vaughan has fully endorsed Dorset Police officers using Facebook and Twitter as part of their jobs.

It comes as forces have come under fire from some sections of the media for their use of social media.

And in some parts of the country, media teams tightly control the accounts used.

But Mr Vaughan said: "I totally support every body in my force being present on social media and engaging the public in the best ways.

"It is a great way to engage with residents.

"We have nearly 65,000 Twitter followers at Dorset Police we can reach and comment and provide information to.

"I actively encourage it. But there is one simple rule; we are professional people, don't be stupid.

"It's a great way of keeping people up to date."

On Monday he tweeted to say: "Busy weekend, 16 prisoners and 76 outstanding logs for the conurbation this morning."

Some of the top Dorset Police accounts to follow include Dorset Traffic Police, Purbeck PC, NPAS Bournemouth and Dorset Bike Cop, as well as Chief Constable James Vaughan.

PC Dave Cotterill, the officer responsible for more than a third of all drug-drive arrests in Dorset is also on Twitter.

Mr Vaughan told the Daily Echo last week, one of his top priorities is officer wellbeing.

He said: “There is rising strain on frontline policing. When I meet officers, they tell me they are struggling to manage the workload.

“We can see this by the rise in referrals to occupational health services. I can visibly see the strain and that’s not a great place to be.

“We have around 2,000 people that come to work here and they come to do a good job. I’m not sure we always make it as easy to do that as we can.”