A police officer has just been assigned to cover Yeovil District Hospital on a full-time basis.

The project is funded by East Somerset NHS Trust, which is understood to pay in the region of £35,000 a year for the officer.

Hospital bosses say the decision was made in order to put weight behind the Zero Tolerance policy launched by the NHS in 1999. The policy aims to send out a message that violence and aggression from any source is unacceptable and won't be tolerated by hospitals and staff.

Trust chairman Angela Dupont said: "We will use the police officer to assist with measures already taken to protect staff.

"The trust expects that the deployment of its very own beat officer will significantly reduce staff concerns about safety and security, and improve the working environment for staff and patients."

Hospital staff can be vulnerable for a number of reasons, including having to work in isolated conditions and with distressed or drug/alcohol-affected patients.

In addition, the presence of a police officer will help to make patients feel safer as well.

Police inspector Trevor Ashford said: "By working in partnership with the trust, we will aim to further reduce crime and improve the safety of both staff and visitors at the hospital."

The officer himself, PC Neil Cullum, said he intends to make the hospital a safer place for staff and patients.

Musgrove Park Hospital in Taunton already has a sponsored police officer, a concept met with mixed reactions over the last few years.

A sponsored police officer is also deployed in West Coker, but Yeovil Town Council turned down an offer from police to sponsor one or two officers last year.

Whilst in favour of having more officers on the beat, councillors felt the financial implications were too severe. Councillors also found it alarming that inspector Ashford had to come to them asking for money.