Police officers sacked and barred rises to nearly 600 in just 12 months

Almost 600 police officers were sacked and barred from returning to their job in England and Wales - in the year to March.

The College of Policing says that's a 50 percent increase on the previous 12 months.

Dishonesty was the most common reason recorded - followed by sexual offences or misconduct.

Figures show four officers were dismissed by Staffordshire Police in the last year.

Assistant Chief Constable Tom Harding, director of operational standards at the College of Policing, said: "It is of course, hugely disappointing to see the conduct of a number of officers falling far below the standard that we set for policing and which the public rightly expects.

"However, these figures show that we have effective, robust procedures in place to identify and deal with these officers swiftly, and to prevent them from holding future roles within the police.

"These figures show that there is nowhere to hide for people who fail to meet the high standards set across our police forces."