A POLICE force which slashed all of its community support officers (PCSOs) last year has started hiring civilians on zero-hours contracts as beat bobbies.

Norfolk Police said yesterday that the new “scene guards,” who will be paid £10 an hour, would be deployed to keep watch over “low-risk” crime scenes.

The force said that the money saved would be put into recruiting more police officers in the coming year.

In a statement, they also said that guarding a crime scene does not require a policing warrant, which could mean that police officers could “deal with greater threats to the community.”

The force said that the move was part of plans to “radically change” the current model of policing in Norfolk, and will likely improve overall services.

Alongside guarding a crime scene, the guards are also expected to run a “scene log,” recording the details of people entering and leaving the scene of the incident, and dealing with media enquiries.

The force has explicitly said that the guards will be on zero-hours contracts.

Labour MP Clive Lewis, who represents Norwich South, has publicly condemned the plans.

He said: “The gig economy reaches our police forces. This sounds like a really, really, really bad idea for so many reasons.”

Norfolk Police Federation chairman Andy Symonds said that the possibility of the guard’s role being broadened in the future was “concerning.”