THE controversial restructuring of Durham Police was hailed as a positive step for the county by the force's new area commanders yesterday.

Chief Superintendents Michael Banks and Derek Hall said the decision to get rid of the constabulary's six divisions and create two areas, north and south, would rid Durham of postcode policing and give the public a more consistent service.

They promised that the changes, which came into force earlier this month, would not reduce the number of officers on the beat.

Chief Supt Hall has been put in charge of the north area, covering Durham, Derwentside and Easington and Chester-le-Street, where the area headquarters is now based.

Chief Supt Banks is south area commander, based in Darlington and covering Sedgefield and Wear and Tees.

Chief Supt Hall said Durham had suffered in the past from postcode policing, where people across the county got a different service from police depending on where they lived.

"We want to get rid of that," Chief Supt Hall said.

"We have now got two commanders working together, rather than six, and therefore the approach will be a lot more consistent."

Chief Supt Banks said: "It gives us a lot more flexibility than we have had in the past. We have had those artificial divisions where each has their own structure and their own means of deploying their staff. That will change."

Chief Supt Hall said the loss of four chief superintendent posts, through natural wastage and redeployment, would save the force £500,000, which could be spent on extra constables.

"This will actually mean more officers, not fewer, as people have feared," he said.

The restructure, which will be officially launched next April, also includes the introduction of 13 community inspectors, two superintendent operations managers, a community justice chief inspector who will concentrate on anti-social behaviour and business managers for each area.

The two commanders said the changes had the support of the majority of local authorities and partner agencies in the force area, but he acknowledged concerns had been raised by some.

"We are glad people were engaged in the consultation process and felt strongly about policing," said Chief Supt Banks.

"We feel that by April the new system will have bedded in. We believe this is a really positive step forward and a great opportunity for us to provide the community focused policing that the chief constable of Durham wants us to achieve."