Frinton and Walton may have a longer wait for their new £500,000 police station.

And while Essex Police has said it was still committed to providing a new station, a site has not yet been confirmed.

Negotiations had been taking place over two possible sites, but John Dobbing, Essex Police's capital projects co-ordinator, said only one had been identified.

He added there could be planning problems with the site, which is believed to be on land facing Walton Road, Frinton, on the edge of Tendring Technology College's playing field.

It had been hoped to buy a site by the end of the financial year and start work on the new station this year, but now it could be later, Mr Dobbing said.

He added: "I would hope it would not be later than 2002."

A major problem was finding a site sufficiently away from from houses.

"People want the police but they don't want them next door," he said.

Converted for the new archive on 19 November 2001. Some images and formatting may have been lost in the conversion.