The number of assaults on police officers has nearly tripled in just four years.

Figures from Sussex Police show 215 of its officers were assaulted in 2013/14 – up from 187 the year before and more than double the 84 figure recorded in 2009/10.

But despite providing the figures in a Freedom of Information response, the force said the lowly figure of 84 was logged before new recording systems came into effect and did not include “assaults that were informally discussed or reported through other means such as HR”.

A force spokesman said: “Taking these into account, our expectation is that the figure was broadly similar to the following years.”

Assaults on officers include verbal abuse and spitting, as well as physical attacks.

Adrian Rutherford, interim head of the force’s human relations, said: “Our officers and staff find themselves in a wide variety of often unpredictable and fast-moving situations.

“We do not believe that any form of assault is acceptable and we take a positive approach in analysing information on all assaults.

“They range from being spat at, to verbal abuse, and on to those that result in minor or more serious physical injury.

“This approach enables us to identify key patterns so we can provide our colleagues with the most appropriate skills and techniques to reduce the potential for harm to themselves and others, and as a result we are experiencing a downward trend in the number of assaults.”

The figures come just days after the Police Federation voted for all frontline uniformed officers to be offered a Taser to provide protection from terrorists and members of the public.

Last year The Argus reported Taser use by Sussex Police officers had increased more than five times compared to the previous year.

The electronic devices were used by the force’s officers on 164 occasions in 2013 compared to just 30 times in 2012.