Chief Constable welcomes crime figure success

Reporter: Ask Rossendale
Date online: 24/04/2008

NEW figures show a fall in all recorded crime of 9% in the county for the full year 2007/2008 compared to 2006/2007. This is the third year in a row that overall crime has reduced and it is down by 18.6% compared to 2004/2005.

Against a demanding target of an 8.5% reduction in violent crime the Constabulary delivered a reduction of 6.4% which equates to 1,863 fewer victims. This includes a significant reduction in serious violent crime of 11.8% and demonstrates the Constabulary’s commitment to protecting vulnerable people – those most at risk within our communities.

There was a reduction in domestic burglary of 12.3% compared to 2006/2007 and this equates to 700 fewer victims. This now means that domestic burglary has reduced by 72.5% from 1995/1996 or from 18,133 offences to 4,985 offences in just over ten years. Furthermore, this is the first time that the numbers of burglaries recorded in Lancashire has fallen below 5,000 offences since 1973 - a 35 year low.

There was a reduction in all vehicle crime of 17.7% compared to 2006/2007 which means there were 2518 fewer victims. Vehicle crime has reduced by 62.9% from 1995/1996 or from 31,459 offences to 11,672 offences in just over ten years. This represents the lowest number of vehicle crimes recorded in Lancashire since 1980 - a 28 year low.

There has been a 4.8% reduction in robbery and a fall of 14.6% in criminal damage compared to the previous year.

In 2005 the Constabulary set a target to reduce (Public Service Agreement) PSA1 crime by 16.5% which consists of violent offences, acquisitive offences and criminal damage offences. This target was exceeded with an actual reduction of 20.8% being delivered. In 2007/08 alone the Constabulary achieved a reduction of 12.5% against the previous year.

The sanctioned detection rate remains one of the highest in England and Wales at 34.8%, more than 1 in 3 crimes were detected with a positive outcome and crucially an offender brought to justice – receiving a meaningful sanction.

Lancashire Constabulary Chief Constable Steve Finnigan said: “I am extremely pleased with the performance the Constabulary achieved last year. I believe it provides clear evidence of our commitment to keep our communities safe from harm. We have worked hard to establish strong, effective partnerships delivering sustained reductions in crime.

“We will not become complacent, and we continue to identify threats to our communities and ensure that we are well placed to manage risks and mitigate any harm posed for individuals within Lancashire.

“For a small additional cost, the extra contribution made by Council Tax payers in Lancashire last year enabled us to make some important headway into improving the protection we were able to provide in crucial areas including counter-terrorism, serious and organised crime, public protection and our cold case review facility.”

“This year’s additional resources will allow us to further close the gap in Protective Services, developing specialist teams for our work in combating terrorism, targeting serious and organised crime directly affecting our communities at all levels.

“Neighbourhood policing continues to be core business and our local policing teams will ensure that we remain accessible and in touch with community priorities. Above all Lancashire Constabulary will continue to deliver a top quality service to our communities which is tailored to their needs as we have become a truly citizen focused organisation.

David Winthrop JP, Chair of the Police Authority's Performance Scrutiny Group, said: "This is good news for the whole of Lancashire and proves that once again Lancashire Constabulary has sustained, and even improved upon, its already impressive performance. The Police Authority set some challenging targets for the year which we felt would really raise the bar, so we are delighted to see that the Constabulary has risen to the challenge and reaffirmed its reputation as a top performing force.

"With crimes such as burglary at a 35 year low and vehicle crime at a 28 year low, we hope that people are reassured that they are much less likely to become a victim of crime. This is due to highly effective policing, which we firmly believe delivers very good value for money."