By Emily Parsons

Last updated at 12:10, Friday, 25 January 2013

Sex offences in Cumbria fell by one-fifth, according to the latest figures.

Richard Rhodes

Richard Rhodes, the county’s Police and Crime Commissioner welcomed the figures, which saw an overall drop in reported crime of eight per cent in the year to September 2012.

It is part of the new commissioner’s role to oversee and monitor the police’s continued performance.

Mr Rhodes said: “The latest set of crime figures are good and the county remains one of the safest places to live, work and visit.

“It is good to see that burglary has reduced by two per cent and we have one of the lowest rate for burglaries for any police force area in England.

“There has also been a 20 per cent reduction in sexual offences and an eight per cent reduction in violence against the person, which are both key areas.”

He continued: “Criminal damage has reduced by 11 per cent, but the county still has more offences per 1,000 population in England and Wales, and as commissioner I will be monitoring this as we move forward.”

The latest report also concludes that overall public satisfaction with the police remains high – with seven in 10 people agreeing that the police deal with issues that matter to people.

“This is something I want to maintain as I move to set the future policing priorities in the four-year Police and Crime Plan,” Mr Rhodes said.

“I would like to thank everyone for their hard work in making Cumbria even safer as it is about all of us working together to keep communities safe.”

The figures were also welcomed by temporary Chief Constable Bernard Lawson, who gave particular recognition to the fact Cumbria has recorded the second lowest crime rates in England, second only to City of London police.

“Crime in Cumbria is down across the board,” he added. “We promise to continue to work hard to tackle all crime but particularly those that have the most impact on victims.”

“It is encouraging to see that the public are maintaining their high levels of confidence in the constabulary. Community policing is at the heart of all we do and we will continue to focus on improving each neighbourhood.”

First published at 11:32, Friday, 25 January 2013
Published by http://www.newsandstar.co.uk