By Tom Geoghegan BBC News Magazine

Dixon of Dock Green was axed from our television screens 28 years ago but the British bobby is about to make a comeback under new police reforms. But is this sensible policing or misplaced nostalgia?

Local bobbies known by name, accessible by mobile phone and increased personal contact - this is the government's vision for police.

An overhaul of policing - set out in the Home Office White Paper - proposes special neighbourhood teams in England and Wales, which will address issues such as criminal damage, noise nuisance and yobbish behaviour.

The number of beat officers has also been increasing, according to government figures, and more police are also patrolling on bikes.

This appears to mark a return to the days of Dixon, who was taken off air and labelled idealistic just as real-life officers were getting off the pavement and into squad cars.

In terms of catching criminals, perhaps a more targeted use of police, with strategies such as targeting prolific offenders or victimised properties, may be more effective Dr Brian Ewart University of Sunderland Local police plan to be unveiled

So why the sudden change of heart 30 years on?

Chris Pendlington, chairman of the Cleveland Police Federation, said the Dixon of Dock Green method of policing did have its benefits.

"It's not the world's best system, but it has been shown to work. In New York they flooded the place with bobbies on the beat and got results.

"Working within the community and being seen by people living there has an impact on anti-social behaviour and crime."

Unlike beat officers, the new neighbourhood teams will be dedicated entirely to the community and will not be pulled off to attend emergencies. They will also be accountable to a customer charter.

Merseyside is held up as a model because its pilot neighbourhood policing scheme is credited with a drop in crime and a rise in detection rates.

The theory is that if police address residents' concerns about low-level incidents and win their trust, they reap the rewards by getting information on other crimes.

'Hotshots'

Its brainchild is former Boston police chief Paul Evans, who now works at the Home Office. He tackled low-level crime in the US city and subsequently cut murders there by two-thirds.

His methods have the support of the Police Superintendents' Association, who are happy with this change in direction.

Spokesman Sarah Gibbons says: "There are police officers now who have never walked the beat. Local policing delivered locally is the most effective policing you will get."

But was it really that good three decades ago? Colin Naylor, deputy chief executive of the National Association of Retired Police Officers, retired in 2001 after a 31-year career which ended as an inspector.

Has television skewed our view of police work?

He began his career on the beat in Doncaster town centre and was on first-name terms with the locals. Even when he began patrolling by car, he was encouraged to "park up and walk" when they could.

But Mr Naylor believes the increased demands on police and the importance of meeting response-time targets took the emphasis away from the beat.

This has caused some chief constables to question whether community policing is the best use of their resources.

Dr Brian Ewart of the University of Sunderland says: "Officers on the beat are effective in reducing people's fear of crime.

"But in terms of catching criminals, perhaps a more targeted use of police, with strategies such as targeting prolific offenders or victimised properties, may be more effective although not seen by the public."

Dr David Nias, a forensic psychologist at London University, also has his doubts.

"I think in the Dixon of Dock Green days people took police work seriously," he says. "If you committed a crime you expected to be caught, but the expectation now is that you won't be caught and if you are you won't be punished."

More officers are patrolling the streets

There has also been criticism of community support officers (CSOs), who will be part of the neighbourhood team but have no powers of arrest. There are currently 4,000 and that is to be increased to 25,000 by 2008.

The Police Federation says they disrupt the police relationship with the public and researchers at Leeds University have described the CSOs as "mobile scarecrows" who wander the streets aimlessly.

But criminologist and film-maker Roger Graef thinks community policing has been such a success in the past that its reintroduction is long overdue.

"Most intelligence comes from local people and they give that to police officers they know. By addressing low-level crime you build up confidence to get intelligence about bigger stuff."

He says the introduction of the police radio and the squad car, in the early 70s, disconnected police from the communities and has since been acknowledged as a mistake.

The removal of authority figures in other areas of daily life, like bus conductors, has also put more pressure on police.

Partly to blame for the misconception about effective policing is the television image of the "hotshot" detective who solves cases without putting in the groundwork of building relations, Mr Graef adds.

Kojak, you're fired. Come in, PC Dixon...