COMMUNITY safety officers will tune in to a new communications system this week.

The £36,000 investment by Redcar and Cleveland Borough Council links them to Airwave, a secure digital radio network dedicated for the exclusive use of the UK's emergency and public safety services.

The new handsets are radios as well as mobile phones and are aimed at making wardens more efficient.

They have emergency buttons which will allow the wardens to call for assistance and contact police officers and the closed-circuit television cameras control centre.

Redcar council's cabinet member for community safety, Councillor Joyce Benbow, said: "We are the first of the four Teesside authorities and one of the first in the North-East to use the Airwave system which will undoubtedly improve the communication between the wardens and the police.

"We have spent a lot of time reviewing and improving the wardens operation.

"The Airwave service is now provided both on evenings and at the weekends in response to public demand. And this addition will add to the overall efficiency of the service."