Can you say “you’re nicked” in Latvian, Romanian, Polish or Hungarian?

Soaring numbers of immigrants in the county have led Sussex Police to issue an appeal for more officers who can speak eastern European languages.

They have appealed in particular for people living in West Sussex who are fluent in Hungarian, Polish, Latvian or Romanian.

From September, they are set to recruit 30 new Police Community Support Officers to work 37 hours a week for between £18,343 and £20,020 per annum.

This is the first recruitment drive of PCSOs since September 2010.

A force spokesman said: “The annual recruitment drive will add to the 360 men and women who already play key roles in support of Sussex Police in communities across Sussex.

“Joining one of our neighbourhood teams, they'll be the face of local policing.

“Patrolling on foot or by bicycle, they'll fulfil a number of important roles – from dealing with low-level nuisance and antisocial behaviour, to forging links with the public and businesses.

“Providing reliable support to frontline police, they'll help us reduce crime and reduce the fear of crime.

“They’ll have the authority to remove vehicles and issue fixed penalty tickets, and to conduct other duties that do not require the powers of a police officer, such as directing traffic and guarding crime scenes.”

Communities Sussex Police and Crime Commissioner Katy Bourne, added: “It’s important that our PCSOs reflect all the different communities within Sussex so they have a good understanding of the things that concern the communities they are policing.

“This includes people from Eastern Europe, in particular in Arun, but also other areas of Sussex.

“We are looking in particular for PCSOs who have additional language skills we believe can help break through language barriers and so improve our policing response.”