ALMOST 100 officers at Cheshire Constabulary have been spat on or bitten while on duty in the past five years.

The figures, which have been released following a Freedom of Information Act request by the Warrington Guardian, demonstrate the risk officers face on a daily basis, according to Chief Inspector Sarah Pengelly.

She said: “Sometimes it can be a very panic-stricken individual who is in a situation whereby they don’t really understand what they are doing and sometimes it can be very intentional."

Around a quarter of reported attacks on officers involving spitting and biting happened in Warrington.

In 2017 there were 12 reports of officers being spat on or bitten in the town – the highest figure for Warrington in the past five years.

CI Sarah Pengelly said while the figures have increased, she believes this can be linked to an improved recording process used by Cheshire Constabulary.

“The figures for the force suggest there has been an escalation but I think we are simply recording things much more thoroughly,” she added.

A third of UK police forces including Cheshire Constabulary use spit hoods to prevent arrested people spitting or biting.

Last year it was reported how the force had used the spit hoods 215 times since 2011.

The decision to use a spit hood is down to an officer’s judgement at the time of the offence.