SIX police officers were assaulted in Dorset last week - but Taser training could help to stop such attacks, it has been said.

Dorset Police Federation chair Tony Tester has called for more officers to be trained to carry the electroshock weapons after a spate of assaults in the county.

Last weekend, two police officers were punched and headbutted while working in Bournemouth.

A further four officers were spat on in “nasty” assaults earlier in the week, Mr Tester said.

“The number of incidents involving spitting seems to have elevated,” he said.

“We’re not talking here about somebody being spat at and it landing on their trousers. It’s on their faces, in their mouth and eyes. It’s disgusting.”

Officers spat at by offenders may face a battery of health tests, including checks for HIV and Hepatitis C.

On average, an officer a day is assaulted in the county.

However, Mr Tester said some attacks will go unreported, meaning numbers can be higher than records allow for.

Home Office assaults data, calculated with information from the health and safety system at each force, show 91 self-reported assaults on officers during 2015/16 and 220 assaults without injury on a constable.

Mr Tester said: “It’s probably double the number reported as an officer might suffer a graze or a scuff and think it’s just part of the job. We want officers to know that it isn’t part of the job and it should be reported.”

He said Tasers act as a “visual deterrent” for an offender who might otherwise attack an officer.

“The officer may not even need to touch it for it to prevent an assault,” he said.

A spokesman for Dorset Police said: “Unfortunately, the nature of policing means that our officers and staff will, at times, encounter hostility. However, we do not tolerate any type of assault on our staff and any offenders are dealt with robustly.”

Dorset Police and Crime Commissioner Martyn Underhill said: “Police officers and staff face difficult and dangerous situations every day.

“They put themselves in harm’s way in order to keep their communities safe, so it is vital that we provide them with the appropriate training and support.

“I support the force’s commitment to ensuring officers and staff who are assaulted on duty receive the support they are entitled to.”