Fewer crime victims in South Wales

First quarter crime figures for 2009/2010 released by the Home Office on Thursday (22 October 2009) reveal that crime in South Wales has fallen by 8% compared to the same period last year (April – June 2008).

Figures released by the Home Office show that there were over 2400 fewer victims of crime compared to the same period the previous year, with notable reductions in key areas such as auto crime, burglary and violent crime.

The biggest drop was in car crime, with 525 fewer vehicles broken into and 348 fewer cars stolen during the three month period.

There was also a significant reduction in the number of homes burgled, with 158 fewer break-ins during the quarter.

Figures also show a significant reduction in incidents of violent crime, with 472 fewer victims compared to the same period the previous year.

During this period, violence against the person fell by 412, with 31 fewer sexual offences and 29 fewer robberies.

Assistant Chief Constable David Morris said:

“These figures are testament of our commitment to the communities of South Wales and our pledge to address the crimes that really matter to them.

“We continue to see significant reductions in some of the most distressing and costly crimes for victims, including car crime, burglary and violence.

“It is encouraging to see that incidents of car crime and house burglaries, which can have devastating affects on the quality of someone’s life, are decreasing across the force area.

“It is also particularly pleasing to see that there has been a significant reduction in violent crime incidents force wide, with 472 fewer victims compared to the same period last year.

“These figures are further evidence that we are continuing to provide an improved service to our communities and I am pleased to see that South Wales Police is positioned within the top 12 of all 43 forces in England and Wales for delivering the best improvement in key crime categories for this quarter.

“I am especially delighted to see that we are also within the top ten of all forces for delivering the best improvement in both recording and detecting incidents of violence against the person.

“However, we are not complacent and will continue the high standards of good work our communities have come to expect.

“We also recognise that it is not all about figures and we are working very hard with our partners to ensure our communities feel safe and have confidence in the service we deliver.

“Our communities can be reassured that we will continue to pursue excellence in everything we do and as always aim to drive down crime levels across the force area”.

Quarter 1 (April/ May/June) Crime Figures 2009/2010

• Crime (all offence groups) is down by 8% which is equivalent to 2462 fewer victims of crime (around 26 victims of crime per day).
• Violence against the person is down 7.4%, which is equivalent to 412 fewer victims.
• Sexual offences are down by 10.7%, which is equivalent to 31 fewer victims.
• Robbery is down 13.7%, which is equivalent to 29 fewer victims.
• Violent crime (as a whole), is down 7.8% which is equivalent to 472 fewer victims (5 fewer victims per day).
• Burglary of dwellings is down 10.2%, which is equivalent to 158 fewer victims.
• Thefts of motor vehicles are down 27.6%, which is equivalent to 348 fewer victims.
• Thefts from motor vehicles are down 16.3%, which is equivalent to 525 fewer victims.
• Other thefts are down 7.5%, which is equivalent to 529 fewer victims.
• Fraud & Forgery is down 25.4%, which is equivalent to 242 fewer victims.