Overall crime numbers stable in year to the end of September 2014.

The latest crime figures produced by ONS show an increase in some types of crime in York. (See table left)

The biggest concerns will probably be over public order  and “theft from a person” offences both of which have risen for the fifth consecutive quarter.

Drug related crime is also on the increase as are (reported) sexual offenses and shoplifting.

The violence figures remain high.

The Police are right to point out that North Yorkshire is a safe place to live and enjoys the second lowest crime rate in the country.

But there is work to do in York and the figures are likely to reopen the debate about whether the County’s Deputy Chief Constable should be relocated and headquartered in the City.

The York Council may also need to review its policies.

It has a role to play in reducing crime in general and public order problems in particular.

A statement from North Yorkshire Police is reproduced below

 

“A national crime report has confirmed that North Yorkshire is one of the safest places to live, work and visit.

The Office of National Statistics’ “Crime in England and Wales, year ending September 2014” report published today (22 January 2015), places the North Yorkshire Police area as the second lowest crime location in England.

This accounts for a marginal 1% rise in overall crime during the 12 months period, up 333 crimes compared to the previous year with a total of 34,615 crimes.

This increase can be broken down into a fall of 90 “Victim Based Crimes” and an increase of 423 Crimes Against Society, which includes drugs and public order offences and are strongly influenced by police proactively targeting offending.

Broken down into the main crime categories, the ONS figures for North Yorkshire show:

• Domestic Burglaries reduced by 5% (83 fewer incidents, 1,555 in total)
• incidents of criminal damage and arson dropped by 7.3% (420 fewer incidents, 5,301 in total)
• a 12% reduction in Offences Against Motor Vehicles (328 fewer incidents, 2,347 in total)
• Robbery increased by 9.8% (12 more incidents, 135 in total)
• 3% decrease in Theft (543 fewer incidents, 17,634 in total). The majority of these were lower-level crimes such as cycle and shop-related thefts
• Sexual Offences up by 31.7% (210 more incidents dealt with, 872 in total). This rise is regarded as a positive reflection of the confidence victims have in North Yorkshire Police, particularly those making historical complaints. This was also influenced by Operation Yewtree and the opening of a Sexual Assault Referral Centre (SARC) in York
• Violence Against the Person up by 10.8% (651 more incidents, 6,693 in total). This rise is almost entirely attributable to the Violence without Injury category. This includes Common Assault and Harassment offences. A problem profile conducted on trends in this crime category in the Autumn showed improved recording following a recent HMIC inspection, an increase in historical reports, increased pro-activity around enforcement of orders, and improved victim confidence.
• Drug Offences increased by 9.4% (169 more incidents, 1,975 in total)
• Possession of Weapons Offences up by 38% (60 more incidents, 218 in total)
• Public Order Offences increased by 11.4% (131 more incidents, 1,284 in total)
• Crimes Against Society up by 14.3% (63 more incidents, 503 in total)

Reassuring for residents, more recent data between January to December 2014 has shown a positive position. This includes:

• All victim based crime has fallen by 1% (340 fewer crimes, 30,485 in total) with crimes against society such as drug and public order offences, where proactive policing strongly impacts on the numbers of crimes recorded, increasing by 10% (383 more crimes, 4033 in total).
• Burglary is down by 7% (303 fewer crimes, 3998 in total)
• Theft is down by 6% (1091 fewer crimes, 17306 in total)
• Criminal damage is down by 8% (454 fewer crimes, 5189 in total)”