Essex Police is operating with 800 less officers across the county than it was in 2010, according to new figures.

Government statistics released this month on police force numbers across England and Wales show there are now just 2,806 officers working in Essex, compared to 3,606 seven years ago.

Steve Taylor, Chairman of Essex Police Federation, described the fall as “astonishing”.

Figures, published by the Home Office, revealed there are now 60,815 staff employed by forces across the country, a decrease of 3.1 per cent since last year.

The number of Police Community Support Officers is also down more than 10 per cent to 10,551, while the amount of Special Constables fell 7.3 per cent to 14,864.

Steve White, Chairman of the Police Federation of England and Wales, said: “This is a wake-up call.

“The number of officers has been consistently dropping every year for the past seven years. Last year recorded the largest drop in three years.

“The thin blue line is getting even thinner and it’s wreaking havoc on our members.”

For the first time, the report also included data on officer age profiles and showed an ageing workforce where almost half of officers were aged between 41 and 55 years old.

Mr White added: “A large proportion of these officers will be nearing retirement, leaving the service with more gaps to fill.

“Since 2007 the proportion of officers over 40 has increased from 39 per cent to 48 per cent. Over the same period the number of under 26s has halved from 8 per cent to 4 per cent.

“The stakes have never been so high. At a time when we are having to deal with a heightened state of alert it is vital that we have a properly resourced police service, fit for duty, fit for purpose.

“What we need is action from the Government to address this, protect our police service and stop more officers from leaving.”