SEXUAL offences, violent crime and thefts from vehicles shot up in East Hampshire and the surrounding areas over the last year, new figures have revealed.
The incidents of violent crime against a person in the central area of Hampshire, which includes Petersfield, were up 31.9 per cent over the last year, while sexual offences rose by 39.4 per cent and theft from vehicles increased by 31.9 per cent.
However, the figures, which have been published by the Home Office, show that this is a picture that has been reflected nationally as the number of incidents of violent crime shot up by 22 per cent over the last year.
But, there was some good news with household burglaries down from 521 the previous year to 481 last year Ð a reduction of 7.7 per cent.
The figures also showed that detection rates across Hampshire are among the highest in the country, with officers achieving a detection rate of 30 per cent over the 12 months between April 2002 to April 2003 Ð significantly above the national average of 26 per cent.
Home Office experts said that the results were skewed because of changes introduced in the last year to the way that police record crimes.
Under the National Crime Recording Standard (NCRS) more incidents are classified as crime and that is why the numbers have inflated, according to the Home Office.
Hampshire Police also backed up the governmentÕs claim that the rise was down to the different ways in which police officers now record crime.
Assistant Chief Constable, Graham Wyeth, of Hampshire Police said: ÒCrime levels have shown a rise, but the Home Office acknowledges that these increases were largely due to the implementation of the National Crime Recording Standard (NRCS) and that, overall, the picture is not very different to last yearÕs.
ÒWe are particularly pleased by the increase in detection rates and by our performance on domestic burglaries, which have fallen by 58 per cent in the last 10 years.Ó