Tooting and Balham could be overrun with prostitutes after a major vice crackdown by Lambeth Police, it is feared.

A special squad will be launched next week to target vice girls in Streatham, but campaigners claim they will simply migrate to the neighbouring borough.

Bedford Hill and Tooting Bec Common are already hotspots for sex workers, with residents complaining of kerb crawlers and discarded condoms.

The problem dates back to the time of the Boer War, but, despite this, Wandsworth Police has no dedicated vice team.

Antonia Dunn, Bedford ward councillor, said: “It’s very awkward. I know from experience that when Lambeth Police have a push against vice and prostitution they push it back across to Wandsworth.

“It’s about having enough police officers to do the job.”

Bedford Safer Neighbourhood Team (SNT) recently made tackling prostitution a priority and installed CCTV and extra lights in Bedford Hill.

They also increased patrols, made a number of arrests and gave one prostitute an Asbo, preventing her from entering the area.

But the team only consists of seven officers – four of whom are PCSOs – and they are only on duty at certain times.

In contrast, Lambeth’s new sergeant and eight constables will work in addition to Streatham’s SNTs from October 1, in red-light “hotspots”, just outside the Wandsworth borough border.

Tooting MP Sadiq Khan called for a similar squad in Wandsworth to stop the problem moving.

But Inspector Dale Anderton, who leads Wandsworth’s SNTs, welcomed Lambeth’s new team and said his officers would work closely with them to prevent displacement.

He said: “We have sufficient measures in place to prevent that happening. Bedford Hill is no longer an attractive place for them to operate."

Prostitution in Bedford Hill has reduced by 75 per cent in the last 18 months, according to police.