About 200 new Avon and Somerset Police officers and 160 support staff will be funded by the rise from April, which was agreed at a meeting on Wednesday.

Chief Constable Steve Pilkington had requested an increase of 34 % in the amount residents pay to towards the police portion of the tax.

Now the agreement has been reached with the police authority, details of how funds are allocated will be agreed shortly.

'Policing service'

The rise will mean an extra 50p per week for a Band D household in the region.

Mr Pilkington said the increase - which would be invested in a raft of measures - was the result of cuts in government grants to local police forces.

"Everyone wants more of our service, and we want to provide more," he said.

"The resources available to us do not enable us to provide an adequate policing service at the moment," he added.