Two Croatian police officers are spending a week on the beat with Sussex bobbies to learn about community policing in the county.

Damir Takac and Ivan Groznica, heads of uniform policing, are visiting Brighton, Chichester, Crawley and Gatwick.

The aim of the visit is to research community policing as part of major changes to the force in Croatia since the end of the war there.

It was organised by Sussex Police Inspector Tim Tapley, who is currently on secondment in Vukovar, south Croatia.

The town became infamous in 1991 after a three-month-siege which ended with the deaths of more than 3,000 people.

Mr Groznica said policing in the UK was very different from that of his home country.

He said: "Here in Sussex, the police get more support from the community. The community here does a lot to protect itself but that doesn't happen in Croatia.

"As a consequence of war, people are unemployed in my country and that's a big problem. People are frustrated. We have a higher number of criminal cases than we would have usually."

Mr Groznica joined the police force in Vukovar-Sirmium in 1991, the same year the war started. Many cities and towns near his home are still being rebuilt.

He said: "I was a refugee in the war and had to leave my home. I was on the front line and I saw many ugly things."

He and his colleague were amazed by the relatively plush custody suite in Chichester, which opened on Monday. In their country, most police stations only have one cell.

While they were on the beat in Chichester yesterday with two Sussex officers, they saw a beggar being moved on and followed a suspected shoplifter, before checking CCTV footage.

In the afternoon, they visited the mobile police unit in West Sussex, which allows rural residents greater access to police services.

They will also visit an anti-victimisation unit and go on the beat in Brighton at night.

Mr Tapley has taken community policing to Croatia since being stationed there in April.

He said: "My time there has proved to be immensely interesting and rewarding but at the same time frustrating.

"In particular, it has made me realise how advanced we are in Sussex with many community policing concepts. We often take these for granted."