They have given up jobs as diverse as ambulance driving and managing a High Street store to join a new civvy detective team.

The unit of eight women and one man has been enlisted to take on CID duties at Brighton police station and free up officers for front-line work.

They will lighten the paperwork load on uniformed officers, who complain of feeling chained to their desks.

They also have powers to carry out minor inquiries and take statements from witnesses.

Sussex Police has said high visibility policing is a priority.

Acting Detective Inspector Russ Bagley said: "It will enable detectives to concentrate on more important front-line duties and will help uniformed officers get back on the beat quicker."

The idea is to involve the civvy detectives, who go into action on August 13, in criminal cases from beginning to end.

They come from all walks of life and switched from various professions and trades.

Louise Harlow, 21, spent six months as a team manager at Boots in Crawley and, before that, worked as a legal representative for a firm of solicitors.

She said: "It feels good to be on the other side morally. I felt I could use my legal experience because I know what they are going to ask for."

Steve Page, 26, worked for the criminal justice unit at Sussex Police before joining the unit.

The only man on the unit, he said: "It will be good to have a more in-depth knowledge of cases. I feel fine about being the only man. We are all doing the same job. There are lots of jobs where there is only one woman."

Ellen Bryant, 26, has spent the past two years processing forensic and DNA samples for the police.

She said: "I was getting fed-up with it. I like the variety of this job and the way you get to see a case to the finish. You get to go out and about rather than just sitting in an office."

Vicky Newman, 24, has a law degree but changed her mind about becoming a solicitor soon after graduating.

Benita Shelley has a psychology degree which she hopes to put to good use in her new role on the team.

Frances Talbot is a former ambulance driver, Hannah Lumsden used to work at American Express and Bunty Hillman was redeployed from the finance department at Sussex Police headquarters.

Ilona Prince, 31, worked for a commercial property law firm in the city.