Violent and sexual crimes in Kent up by a third

Violent and sexual crime reports in Kent are up by nearly a third in a year on year comparison, according to the most recent numbers.

Data from police.uk show that Kent Police received 7,660 reports of violent and sexual crimes in September 2018. This figure is up from 5,680 in September 2017.

And figures for each of the last 12 months showed an increase from the same month the year before.

A spokesperson from Kent police said: “Kent Police takes a robust stance against all forms of violence to ensure that the county remains a safe place.

“Violent crimes will simply not be tolerated and operational campaigns continue to take place to target those responsible and provide information to the public to reduce the likelihood of them becoming victims.

“We have 34 new officers about to start their duties as part of the Police and Crime Commissioner’s funding proposals to recruit a further 200 officers. This will strengthen the force’s capability to tackle crime wherever it occurs across the county.

Violent crimes will simply not be tolerated – Kent Police

“In recent years we have seen increased victim confidence in reporting sexual offences, including non-recent incidents which has contributed to this increase.

“High profile stories in the media nationally have raised awareness of these crime types and mean people are more likely to recognise that they are a victim and report such offences in the knowledge that their allegation will be taken seriously.”

Crimes by numbers

Kent Police received nearly 230,000 reports of crime in the last 12 months, up from just under 200,000 reports the year before.

The population of Kent is estimated to be around 1.5 million by the county council.

Most crime categories saw an increase in reports in comparison to the same month the year before. Burglary reports increased from 115 to 150, and possession of a weapon reports went up from 77 to 88.

The spokesperson for Kent police continued: “All crime types have experienced an increase in the last twelve months, to the end of June 2018 compared to the previous 12-month period.

“Overall we have seen a 24.6% increase in victim based crime which relates to approximately 31,700 more crimes recorded for that period which is reflected nationally.

“While this may look concerning, a large proportion of the increase is due to the changes in crime recording and the recording of multiple crimes linked to a single incident.

All crime types have experienced an increase in the last twelve months – Kent Police

“Other crime types have experienced slight increases such as burglary (6.1%), theft (8.5%) and vehicle offences (9.7%).

“These have been affected in part by the improved recording process, but this could also be due to increased confidence to report, and that we now have more ways to report a crime, for example the provision of online reporting via our website.

“We are not complacent about any crime rises, even if analysis suggests changes to recording and reporting are behind these figures.”