DORSET police spend more per head on public relations than almost any other force in the country.

Although the force is of the smallest in the country it has one of the highest levels of spending on public relations at 72 pence per person.

From a request under the Freedom of Information Act, the Daily Echo discovered that last year Dorset Police spent more than £500,000 on 12 full time public relations staff, one part time and two student placements.

This money is roughly equivalent to 25 extra police constables.

In 2002 Dorset Police's PR spend was less than half at £230,000.

Nationally, the PR spend by police has risen by 13 per cent over the last two years and would be more than enough to fund the part of the police's annual pay rise denied by the government, or to put an extra 1,400 officers on the streets.

Senior officers say marketing is aimed at providing accurate information to the public but there are concerns that officers withhold information in a bid to manipulate the news agenda.

Clive Chamberlain, chairman of the Dorset Police Federation, said: "Press officers are a necessary conduit for information, but officers all over the country are concerned that there is a lot of carefully laundered PR and that money should be spent on policing.

"Ultimately it is about policing, not spinning. If you ask any police officer in the country they will tell you they would rather money was spend putting police officers on the streets."

He described PR officers as "a necessary evil".

He added many police press offices across the country put out good news but have an "if asked policy" on bad news.

He said the growing use of civilians in the police force was a good thing if it freed police officers to do front line work but it some cases it was expensive.

Paul Breakwell, head of corporate communications at Dorset Police, said about 20 per cent of the budget was spend on the press office responding to media calls and the majority of the rest was spent on PR officers who deal with the safer neighbourhood teams, organising leaflet and poster campaigns among other duties.

He said: "The proof of our success is that public confidence in Dorset Police is at 62 per cent."

Nationally police forces are estimated to spend almost £40million on public relations.

Scotland Yard has a PR bill of £6million but London's new mayor Boris Johnson pledged to cut marketing costs and promised to redirect the money to front line policing.