Bassetlaw bucks the national trend with drop in crime rate

But with no official crime statistics yet published for the coronavirus lockdown period, police chiefs say their own figures show overall crime remains far below normal levels.

Nottinghamshire Police recorded 10,604 offences in Bassetlaw in the 12 months to March, according to the Office for National Statistics (ONS).

That was a decrease of two per cent compared to the previous year, when there were 10,851.

At 91 crimes per 1,000 people, that was slightly higher than the rate across England and Wales, which stood at 89.

Crimes recorded in Bassetlaw included 262 sexual offences, 3,240 violent offences, 1,305 incidents of criminal damage and arson, 243 drug offences, 88 offences of possessing weapons such as firearms or knives, 727 public order offences and 4,384 theft offences.

Overall, police recorded three per cent more crime across England and Wales – there were almost 5.8 million offences in the year to March – although this figure excludes crime recorded by Greater Manchester Police, whose data was compromised after the installation of new IT software.

The increase was largely driven by rises in stalking and harassment and fraud and computer misuse, which both jumped by 12 per cent.

However, the ONS said stalking and harassment figures may have been affected by improvements in the way police record crime, which could explain the large increase.

The ONS also said crime figures were largely unaffected by the coronavirus pandemic, as the period covered was mostly pre-lockdown.

However, the National Police Chiefs' Council (NPCC) says its own provisional figures, which cover the four weeks to July 5, show crime has fallen by 14 per cent compared to the same period last year.

Chief Constable Andy Cooke, NPCC lead for crime, said: “The vast majority of the public continue to follow the rules in place to limit the spread of the virus, and as a result, we have seen sustained reductions in crime over the course of the lockdown period.

"It is no surprise that as more people are able to move around freely, we will begin to see movement towards previous levels.

"However, this is a gradual change.”

Mr Cooke added that previous reductions in reports of rape appeared to be slowing, suggesting they may soon return to 2019 levels.

He continued: “This is likely to be a combination of increased opportunities for wider social contact and easing of restrictions, making it easier for victims to report rape and assault.

“Please report to us if you have been a victim of rape, assault or domestic abuse – wherever or whenever it happened.

"We will do all we can to investigate and there are many excellent organisations who can provide support and advice.”