Officers from the Cumbria force, plus Cumbria social services staff, are travelling to Dalarna in Sweden.

The trip has been funded under a European Union project to promote closer working between EU states.

Meanwhile officers from Sweden and Hungary are due to visit Cumbria in May.

Four officers from Cumbria Constabulary fly out to Dalarna for the five-day trip beginning on 17 March.

Abuse images

There is also involvement with police officers from the Budapest force in Hungary, as part of the EU initiative aims to involve countries which will become members of the EU in 2004.

Detective Superintendent Jon Rush of Cumbria Police, said: "The police in Dalarna were looking for a police force to work with in England.

"They contacted this force because one of our officers had already made contact with one of their staff when they were both serving in Bosnia.

"We will be looking at case studies of child sexual abuse to compare how the criminal justice system in each country deals with such reports, how child protection is carried out, and what is being done to tackle child abuse images on the internet."

Paul Moore, head of children and families service at Cumbria County Council, said: "These exchange visits reinforce the importance of all agencies working together in the interests of child protection."

A final conference involving all the UK, Sweden and Hungary will take place in Sweden on 22 September.