Latest crime statistics show that Dorset remains the sixth safest area in the country, after experiencing a rise in crime lower than other parts of England and Wales.

The Office for National Statistics released data last week, which showed that overall crime rose by 1.4 per cent in Dorset during the 12 months from April 1 2022 to March 31 2023. This increase is significantly less than the national average of 4.8 per cent and puts Dorset as the sixth safest area in the country.

During this latest period, violence against a person decreased by 0.6 per cent in Dorset, lower than the national increase of 0.7 per cent, while violence with injury fell by 5.8 per cent, compared to a national increase of 1.2 per cent.

Reports of sexual offences dropped by 0.2 per cent, compared to a national rise of 0.9 per cent. Additionally, reports of rape offences reduced by 3.5 per cent, compared to a national decrease of 1.5 per cent. 

Deputy Chief Constable Sam de Reya, of Dorset Police, said: "It is promising to see that Dorset has remained in the top ten safest counties across England and Wales, maintaining our position in sixth place.

"We work hard to relentlessly pursue criminality, and prevent and detect crime. We utilise the data to identify harm in our communities and target certain crime types to keep people safe. We remain driven in our efforts to be the safest county in the country.

"It is positive to see a decrease in sexual and violent offences during this time. The force is part of Operation Soteria Bluestone, which aims to improve the response of the police service to victims of rape and sexual offences and their experience of the criminal justice process.

"This is helping us achieve our commitment to putting victims first, better supporting victims, improving the time periods from initial report to resolution and increasing the number of cases going to court.

"We are committed to a range of initiatives taking place across Dorset to fight crime and tackle violence. We have extremely good relationships with our partners and continue to share data, information and intelligence with them so that we can work together to improve criminal justice outcomes, and help protect people from harm.

"Like other areas of the country, the force has seen an increase in some crimes. Residential burglaries have shown a decrease of 4.7 per cent, whereas burglaries involving businesses and community premises have increased by 12.9 per cent.

"This remains below the national increase of 13.6 per cent and we are continuing to work to reduce offending and provide up-to-date crime prevention advice.

"It is encouraging to see that our efforts to combat anti-social behaviour (ASB) has reduced crime in this area by 12.6 per cent compared to the previous year. We know that ASB has a significant impact on our communities and we have been driving dedicated operations and activities to tackle this, while also working collaboratively across force borders to tackle ASB-related crime and incidents.

"We have also seen an increase of 16.7 per cent for vehicle-related offences, which is above the national increase of 12.5 per cent. These disruptive crimes often cause real inconvenience and a fear of crime in communities. 

"I would ask motorists to help us reduce the chances of it from happening by taking some simple preventative actions, such as locking your vehicle, even when filling up or parked on your drive, and keeping your keys safe, out of view and away from your front door.

"Try not to leave items on display, and if you can't take your items with you, always try to hide them so they aren't in plain sight."