Crime on the rise in South Warwickshire, official figures show

File photo dated 22/10/14 of a Police officer, as according to new figures, some of the UK's biggest police forces have recorded a rise in the number of violent homophobic crimes this year, with hundreds of assaults on gay and lesbian people reported to police so far in 2014 - including more than 300 in London alone. Scotland Yard recorded 1,073 violent homophobic offences between January and October, up from 1,007 in 2013 and 1,002 in 2012.

Crime has risen over the last year in South Warwickshire, official police records reveal.

Warwickshire Police recorded 16,758 offences in South Warwickshire in the 12 months to March, according to the Office for National Statistics.

That was an increase of 10% compared to the previous year, when there were 15,239.

However, at 60.4 crimes per 1,000 people, that was far lower than the rate across England and Wales, which stood at 89.3.

Of the crimes recorded in the area over the last 12 months, 595 were sexual offences – an increase of 20% from the year before.

Meanwhile, violent crime has risen in the area, from 5,736 to 6,416 over this period.

One of the main factors behind this increase was the rise in violence with injury, which rose by 17%, from 1,493 incidents to 1,744.

And theft offences rose by 11%, with 5,707 incidents recorded in the 12 months to March.

At 20.6 crimes per 1,000 people, that was lower than the rate across England and Wales, which stood at 25.1.

Crimes recorded in South Warwickshire included:

595 sexual offences, a rise of 20%6,416 violent offences, a rise of 12%1,552 incidents of criminal damage and arson, up 7%403 drug offences, down 30%199 possession of weapons such as firearms or knives, up 17%1,437 public order offences, up 21%5,707 theft offences, a rise of 11%2,091 stalking and harassment offences, up 7%