THE public protection unit is the unseen side of policing. You may not see its officers walking down the street in a uniform, but they are doing a great deal to keep us safe.

They work behind the scenes managing dangerous offenders, dealing with child protection, hate crimes, vulnerable adults and domestic violence.

Detective Chief Inspector Sean Paley, who works at the unit's central headquarters said their work was often often a sensitive nature, and the victim was always at the forefront of their minds.

"Everything we do is with regards to the victim's wishes and their needs," he said. "We therefore consider a range of not just police support but multi-agency services and referrals to give people the support they need.

"We very much encourage victims to come forward and we put in place a full range of services with the Crown Prosecution Service around giving evidence at court. Throughout the criminal justice process there are measures to give victims and witnesses the support they need."

Dangerous criminals can include sex offenders, arsonists and violent offenders.

Following legislation introduced in 2003, the police joined forces with the prison and probation services to manage these most dangerous criminals.

Mr Paley said that through this joint working arrangements, the force could ensure all relevant information was available to identify and manage risks.

For example, information from one organisation might lead to an offender being recalled to prison or other measures could be put in place to ensure the safety of the public - or even to protect the offender from the community.

Similarly, if a baby goes to A&E with a broken arm or if a schoolteacher spots signs of abuse in one of his pupils, it can be flagged up to the team.

As well as working with other groups locally, the unit has to have good relationships with its colleagues across the UK. Mr Paley said West Mercia was the first force to use the Child Exploitation and Online Protection Service - a national website dedicated to tackling child sex abuse - by publishing the photo of a wanted sex offender.

West Mercia also uses the Violence and Sex Offenders Register (ViSOR) - a national computer system - to manage offenders.

Detective Inspector Jon Wallis, who is in charge of the unit in south Worcestershire, said: "It's an on-going record of contacts, visits, intelligence and activity. For example, if someone in Newcastle came to Worcester, we would take over the management of the individual and the ViSOR record would be transferred.

The major benefit is that there's no loss of information because it's all on the national system."

Because the nature of the internet means crimes such as grooming cross constabulary boundaries, the team will often carry out search warrants for other forces, or ask them to do the same.

The public protection unit has officers specially trained to interview sex offenders and can use specialists to find evidence on computers that the offender may have thought they had wiped.

Hate crimes, where people are targeted because of issues such as race, sexuality or gender, are another part of the unit's work.

Mr Wallis said the group has close links with ethnic minorities in the county and it also works in partnership with Worcestershire Lesbian, Gay, Bi-sexual and Transgender, - which has an advisory group that meets at West Mercia's Hindlip headquarters every month to advise police about homophobic incidents.

The officers also works closely with social services to help vulnerable adults who have been targeted by crooks.

Mr Wallis said: "It can be financial, emotional or physical. We help People are targeted because they are vulnerable. For instance if there are concerns about malpractice or ill-treatment going on in a care home, we would be involved."

Another big part of the unit's work is domestic abuse. It works closely with Victim Support, domestic violence forums and other agencies.

The force's Home Truths campaign was launched in November 2005 to raise awareness of this hidden crime.

The campaign is focused on supporting victims, convicting offenders and setting up initiatives to stop abuse.

These include investing in specialist domestic abuse courts, with dedicated prosecutors, police officers, specially trained magistrates and legal advisors.

Fast-tracking domestic violence cases or clustering them on a designated day speeds up the justice process for victims.

Over the last 12 months, the introduction of care plans has enabled officers to improve the support and protection given to victims. These mean victims of domestic violence who are believed to be at risk of repeated or serious injury can be closely managed by specialist officers.

Under the system, when a victim calls the police, the computer system notifies the call taker they have called before and can relay the history to officers attending the incident.

So while you may not see them on the beat, you can sleep better knowing the public protection unit is out there, fighting crime on your behalf.

The truth about domestic abuse

* One in four women and one in six men will suffer domestic violence during their lifetime.

* One in five violent crimes is linked to domestic abuse and five out of six murders committed in West Mercia involve a history of domestic violence.

* Nine out of 10 incidents are witnessed by children under 16 and they are often victims of it too.

* Domestic violence can include threatening behaviour, psychological, physical, sexual, financial, or emotional abuse between individuals who are or have been intimate partners, regardless of gender or sexuality.

* It can include incidents between family members.

* It is largely a hidden crime.

* It is rarely a one-off incident - victims may endure between 30 and 35 assaults before they ask for help.

* Domestic violence has more repeat victims than any other crime - 44 per cent of victims are involved in more than one incident.

* Only 35 per cent of incidents are reported.

* Every minute in the UK police receive a phone call for help because of domestic violence.

* On average, two women a week are killed by violent current or former partners.

* Offences occur mainly at weekends between 4pm and 4am, indicating a link with alcohol and drugs.

* About 15 per cent of cases involve men as victims.

* New legislation has been introduced that means a prosecution can be pursued without evidence from the victim.

* Friends, family and neighbours have a role to play in reporting incidents or suspicions - it could save someone's life.