Rural police in Yorkshire celebrate one year - and 100th arrest

In 2015, the National Rural Crime Survey discovered that people in the countryside were not only living in fear of offences being committed against them, but that they were under-reporting incidents by up to a third.

North Yorkshire Police’s Rural Taskforce was then set up in April 2016, and has since made 101 arrests, reported 71 people for summons and seized 39 vehicles.

Inspector Jon Grainge leads the Rural Taskforce. He said: “The team have had a very busy – and very productive – first year of operation. Crucial to our success is working with the community, talking to local residents and businesses, understanding the issues that affect them and offering advice wherever possible. There have been thousands of conversations over our first year and this year we’ll have thousands more.

“That two-way communication is vital, and we need people to continue to tell us about suspicious incidents. Particularly in rural areas, local residents and businesses can act as the eyes and ears of the police, helping us clamp down on crime and anti-social behaviour whenever it occurs. Local people know when something or someone is suspicious, out of place or unusual in your community and we need you to tell us about it.”

The team is made up of an Inspector, Sergeant, seven Police Constables and seven Police Community Support Officers, based across the districts of the county. In addition, there is also an intelligence analyst and a rural policing coordinator, ensuring that the Taskforce is responding to trends in crime flexibly and proactively by using information gathered from colleagues, communities, and partners alike.

The Rural Taskforce builds on the work already carried out by North Yorkshire Police’s Neighbourhood Policing Teams, response officers and proactive policing colleagues in tackling rural crime head-on.

Two campaigns started by the task force include Horse Watch, which aimed to tackle thefts of expensive tack and equestrian equipment, and Operation Traverse, which clamped down on illegal fish poaching.