Staffordshire Police have welcomed a fall of around 20 per cent for burglaries, robberies, and violence with injury offences recorded in the county.

The latest statistics released today (July 17) show a trend of reducing crime in Staffordshire, with another drop in overall crime following on from reductions in the previous quarterly reported data.

There has been a six per cent decrease in the total number of crimes recorded (excluding fraud) compared with the year ending March 2019.

The figures, released by the Office for National Statistics (ONS) show a 20 per cent fall in robberies reported and a 19 per cent drop in violence with injury offences.

Burglary saw an 18 per cent decrease, with possession of weapons offences down by 11 per cent.

Additionally, improvements were made in terms of theft which reduced by ten per cent. Bike theft fell, however theft from person increased by 18 per cent.

Sex offences reported in Staffordshire also fell by eight per cent, while criminal damage and arson dropped seven per cent.

Chief Constable Gareth Morgan said, "We welcome these latest figures - and while we're pleased that we're one of the forces in the country to see a drop in overall crime, as lockdown measures continue to ease, we are determined to bear down on crime and do all we can to try and prevent it rising to pre-lockdown highs.

"Violent crime continues to be a priority for us and all too often police see the effects of violence on individuals and communities. We recently announced the launch of a multi-agency strategy committed to tackling serious violence and its root causes which commits partners to working together even more closely to deliver real action and change with a greater focus on prevention to stop harm happening.

"The force also continues to invest areas such as an enhanced roads policing capability, digital investigations and a proactive disruption capability to tackle the issues that cause local concern and deliver a better service and outcomes for communities.

"I would like to acknowledge the hard work and dedication of the police officers, staff and volunteers of Staffordshire Police alongside partner agencies who work tirelessly to tackle criminality and support victims and witnesses."

These figures include data until the end of March 2020 – therefore they are not impacted by the COVID-19 lockdown.