A COLCHESTER village is to hire a private security firm to patrol the streets after the Essex Police presence dropped to "zero".

Tiptree Parish Council has agreed to pay Regency Security Group £12,000-a-year to carry out on-foot and vehicle patrols in the village in a bid to stop antisocial behaviour and deter would-be criminals.

A six-month trial is set to begin in June.

Carolyn McSweeney, parish clerk, said: "We have become unhappy with the police presence in the village, which is zero, and we were advised, following a meeting with the Police and Crime Commissioner, that on-foot police patrols would not happen anymore and it is up to us to provide our own arrangements - so that's what we're doing."

A number of companies contacted the council touting their services but after a series of interviews, parish councillors plumped for the Braintree-based security company.

Mrs McSweeney added: "This is not something we have done before but we will be entering into a contract with them, which will begin in early June."

Paul DeAnglis, business manager at Regency Security Group, added: "We will be providing a mix of security operatives, including street and mobile patrols.

"We aim to have a very visible presence and we will be targeting hot spots around the village, using local intelligence and recent events."

He added: "We all know with all the cuts [to Essex Police], it is very difficult for the police to always reach out to all areas."

The company is one of few in the UK which is CSAS-accredited, which means its staff have limited powers to deal with graffiti, litter, abandoned cars and low level anti-social behaviour - similar to the powers of a PCSO.

Mr DeAnglis added: "We are not replacing the police but I suppose we are the next best thing."

The security staff will carry out a mix of day and night patrols and shift patterns will change regularly to make sure would-be troublemakers know they are always at risk of getting caught.

Tiptree has about 11,000 households, so it will cost each home about £1.10 extra to pay for the company.

Crime has risen since the town lost its police station in 2011 and then its dedicated team of officers.

Between June and August in 2011 there were 103 crimes reported, with 108 during the same period in 2012.

In 2014, between June and August, there were 135 crimes reported. Last year, the figure went up to 140.

Most recent figures, show in January and February this year, 95 crimes have already been reported.

MP Priti Patel, whose constituency includes Tiptree, said: “Tiptree Parish Council is democratically elected and they are accountable to local residents for the decisions that they take.

"Keeping the community in the village safe is a priority for them and the parish council, police and all other agencies must work closely to address anti-social behaviour concerns.”

Inspector Sharn Taylor, of Essex Police, said: "Tiptree is a safe village in a safe county.

"Levels of crime and anti-social behaviour in the county are well below the England and Wales average.

"The areas patrolled by officers and PCSOs are chosen based on demand and are reviewed on a weekly basis.

"Currently we aim to patrol Tiptree daily.

"Colchester’s community policing team are working in the villages and towns across the district to fight and prevent crime, protect people from harm and work with local authority partners to tackle local problems."

Tiptree is not the first Essex village to take such drastic action.

The move follows the decision by Frinton and Holland-on-Sea to employ private security firm AGS to run patrols for £2 each.