Sex crime reports soar in region

THE number of sexual offences reported to one of Yorkshire’s police forces has soared by more than half amid claims revelations about Jimmy Savile have encouraged victims to come forward.
Jimmy SavileJimmy Savile
Jimmy Savile

West Yorkshire Police saw the highest rise of any force in the country for the number of sexual offences reported in the 12 months up to June, according to the latest crime statistics.

Its total rose by 51 per cent from the previous year to 2,684, compared with a national rise of nine per cent to 55,812 and a region-wide rise of 29 per cent to 5,472 over the same period. Across the Yorkshire and the Humber region total recorded crime against adults and households dropped by seven per cent to 356,370 offences in the 12 months to June.

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The nationwide rise in reports of sexual offences is said by the Office for National Statistics (ONS), who compiled the new figures, to be partly a ‘Yewtree effect’, whereby greater numbers of victims have come forward to report historical sexual offences to the police. Yewtree is a national police investigation, launched last year in the wake of claims against disgraced Leeds-born DJ Savile, which has seen a number of celebrities arrested.

Police in West Yorkshire, where Savile lived for most of his life, say they are “really encouraged by the significant increase in the reporting of sexual offences”.

A West Yorkshire Police spokesman added: “The increase does not mean necessarily that there have been more offences than in other parts of the UK.

“It does, however, represent clear evidence that survivors of sexual abuse have the confidence to be able to come forward and report the crime to West Yorkshire Police and that they are confident the force will listen to them and take them seriously.”

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He added that many sexual offences go unreported and that the force had “worked tirelessly to increase public confidence so survivors feel able to come forward”.

West Yorkshire Police saw the biggest overall drop of eight per cent to 163,746 recorded offences, including fraud, over 12 months. Recorded crime in North Yorkshire dropped by seven per cent to 34,801, South Yorkshire by five per cent to 93,116 and the Humberside police force area by four per cent to 64,707.

The number of violent attacks that led to an injury in the region fell by six per cent to 29,409 recorded offences, though more minor attacks where the victim escaped injury rose by seven per cent in the same period to 19,949.

Though overall crime dropped in South Yorkshire, the county saw an alarming rise of 15 per cent in the number of robberies to 964 and a nine per cent increase in burglaries to 16,661, bucking the national and regional trend. It also saw a rise of 34 per cent in thefts from the person to 1,805 offences, an increase four times higher than the national average.

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The Yorkshire Post reported this summer that crime rates in Barnsley and Rotherham had risen owing to a spate of burglaries in the district, despite the number of offences continuing to fall in Sheffield and Doncaster.

The headline crime figure nationwide is the lowest since the Crime Survey for England and Wales began in 1981, and is now less than half its peak level in 1995, according to the ONS.

Crime prevention minister Norman Baker cited recent falls as evidence of the success of police reforms, adding: “Forces are rising to the challenge of making savings whilst cutting crime and delivering a better service to the public.”

Commenting on the rise in reported sexual offences, Tony Lloyd, chairman of the Association of Police and Crime Commissioners Board, said: “Although some of the recorded increase is related to historical cases this is a worrying trend and which must be addressed.”