More crime is being committed in Stevenage and North Herts, with the latest figures showing a combined hike of 23.2 per cent in the two districts over the past year.

The Comet: The latest crime figures show a combined hike of 23.2 per cent in Stevenage and North Herts. Picture: Getty Images/iStockphotoThe latest crime figures show a combined hike of 23.2 per cent in Stevenage and North Herts. Picture: Getty Images/iStockphoto (Image: FOTOKITA)

The Office for National Statistics has published the police-recorded crime data in its latest study, The Crime Survey for England and Wales.

The data provides a measure of long-term trends for a selected range of crimes experienced by the general public.

There were 8,559 offences recorded by police in the 12 months ending June 2017 in Stevenage, meaning crimes are up by 25.8 per cent on the previous year when the number stood at 6,801.

Sexual offences rose by 26.3 per cent from 186 in the year up to June 2016 to 235 in the current year.

The Comet: Domestic burglaries have risen North Herts and decreased in Stevenage, according to the latest ONS figures.Domestic burglaries have risen North Herts and decreased in Stevenage, according to the latest ONS figures. (Image: KatarzynaBialasiewicz)

Criminal damage and arson offences also rose from 1,035, in the 12 months ending June 2016, to 1,170 in the latest figures – an increase of 13 per cent.

Drug offences increased by 11.4 per cent in the 12 months ending June 2017, with the latest figure standing at 369 and the figure for the year ending June 2016 at 331.

Theft from a person dropped 16.9 per cent in Stevenage with 106 crimes in the year ending June 2016 and 88 in the latest results.

Cases of domestic burglary also decreased from 187 in the 12 months ending June 2016 and 101 in the statistics one year on – a drop of 45.9 per cent.

The most prevalent offence, however, was violence without injury – with 1,606 reported cases in the current year’s statistics and 1,178 in the 12 months ending June 2016. This is an increase of 36.3 per cent.

In neighbouring North Herts, crime has risen 20 per cent over the course of the past year – with the total number of offences committed in the 12 months ending June 2017 standing at 6,906 compared to 5,747 12 months previously.

Sexual offences rose by 45.3 per cent from 141 in the year up to June 2016 to 205 in the current year.

Domestic burglaries rose by 30 per cent from 243 to 316 over the same period – and there were 20 less cases of theft from a person, with 115 cases in the 2016 figures and 95 this year, a drop of 17.3 per cent.

There were four fewer drug offences in the 12 months ending June 2017 than in the previous year.

The most prevalent offence – as with Stevenage – was violence without injury, with 1,098 cases in the current year – an increase of 20.9 per cent on the total from 12 months ago, which stood at 908.

A Herts police spokesman said of the figures: “We have placed great focus on the under-reporting of crime during the past year, and on encouraging victims to come forward to ensure their longer term safety.

“While Hertfordshire continues to experience relatively low levels of crime, having one of the lowest levels of recorded crime in the country, we do experience local crime hotspots, and we are proactively tackling these problems and pursuing the people responsible.”

The Office for National Statistics’ figures show that the rise in crime in Stevenage and North Herts is higher than the national picture where there has been a 13 per cent increase in police recorded crime in England and Wales on average from the previous year.

Over the longer term, the figures show that crime in Stevenage is down from 10 years ago – with 9,067 crimes in the year ending June 2007 – but up from five years ago, when recorded crimes stood at 5,992 for the year ending June 2012.

North Herts has also seen a reduction compared with 10 years ago, with 8,775 crimes in the year ending June 2007 – but up from the figures from the year ending June 2012, when recorded crimes stood at 5,836.

For a full breakdown of the data go to the ONS website at www.ons.gov.uk/peoplepopulationandcommunity/crimeandjustice