A PLANNED strike by thousands of civilian police workers in England and Wales has been called off.

Members of unions, including Unison and Unite, working as 999 call handlers, scene of crime officers, police community support officers and custody officers, were due to walk out on Friday followed by a month-long overtime ban, in a row over pay.

Unison said a revised pay offer had been made which staff will be consulted on.

Ben Priestley, national officer of Unison, said: “The revised pay offer is an improvement for our members and is the result of negotiations with police employers over the Christmas and New Year period.”

The offer, from March 2015 to August 2016, includes a 2.2 per cent rise from March 1 and a similar increase in standby allowances.