Police in Oxford are the healthiest in the Thames Valley, according to the latest figures.

Statistics show that the reduction in sick days taken during the last 12 months amounts to more than an entire year in officer time.

The force's private medical scheme, which has dramatically reduced the period of time officers wait for treatment, has been credited for the improvement, along with high morale and good management.

Thames Valley Police's target of reducing sickness by one day per officer has been met comfortably among Oxford's 300-plus police. Personnel manager Joyce Milligan said: "In the Oxford area in particular there's a very good feeling because performance is good. The motivation is there."

The average number of sick days taken per officer in Oxford was less than nine -- three below the national and Thames Valley averages.

From April, 2001, to April this year, there were 3,221 sick days taken by Oxford police -- almost 400 fewer than the previous year.

Officers are taking an average of 1.3 fewer sick days than in 2000-2001. Across the Thames Valley, the number of working days lost during the last year was 64,377.

There has also been a marked improvement in south Oxfordshire, which has 255 officers. In the past year, the average number of sick days per officers was 13.5, a reduction of 1.2.

But in the north Oxfordshire police area, which has 290 police, the number of sick days was unchanged at about 13 per officer.

Bill Bradshaw, one of Oxfordshire's representatives on the Thames Valley Police Authority, said: "It's mostly the long-term sickness figures that have seen an improvement. We have worked hard at it for 18 months to two years. The public want to see people on duty, not off sick." The police's private medical scheme, Optima (Occupational Private Treatment and Intervention for Medical Assistance) was introduced in March, 2000, and allows staff to be treated much more quickly than if they had to wait for NHS treatment.