Rise in violent crime in North Lincolnshire

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.

Violent crime has risen in North Lincolnshire over the last year, despite an overall drop in recorded offences.

Humberside Police recorded 5,445 incidents of violent crime in North Lincolnshire in the 12 months to December, according to the Office for National Statistics.

That was an increase of 3% compared to the previous year.

At 31.5 crimes per 1,000 people, that was slightly lower than the rate across England and Wales, which stood at 33.8.

One of the main factors behind the increase in North Lincolnshire was the rise in stalking and harassment, which rose by 10%, from 1,861 incidents to 2,055.

Offences of violence with injury were recorded 1,570 times, an increase of 4% on the previous year, and violence without injury on 1,815 occasions, down by 4%.

There were three homicides, which include murders and manslaughters, up by two on the previous 12 months.

Around 6.1 million offences were recorded across England and Wales in the year to December, including computer fraud and computer misuse.

This was up 8% from 5.6 million in 2020, but roughly the same number as recorded in the 12 months to March 2020, before the coronavirus pandemic.

The total number of offences in North Lincolnshire fell by 5%, with police recording 13,914 crimes over the course of the year.

This puts the overall crime rate at 80.5 per 1,000 people, compared to a national average of 85.5.

Other crimes recorded in North Lincolnshire included:

452 sexual offences, a decrease of 7%3,576 theft offences, down 18%1,681 incidents of criminal damage and arson, down 1%417 drug offences, down 1%76 possession of weapons such as firearms or knives, down six1,747 public order offences, down 1%

The number of sex crimes logged by police across England and Wales reached another record high in 2021.

Police forces recorded 183,587 rapes and sexual offences in the year to December 2021 – up 22% on 2020 (150,748), which was previously the highest annual figure to date.

Some 37% of sexual offences recorded (67,125) were rapes – a 21% rise from 55,592 in the 12 months to December 2020.

There was also a rise in domestic-abuse related crime in 2021, and stalking and harassment.

Diana Fawcett, chief executive of the charity Victim Support, said she was "seriously concerned" by the latest figures.

She added: “Sadly, these figures reflect what we’re seeing – the number of sexual violence cases referred to us have increased by a third since before the pandemic.

“We also know that court delays for victims of sexual violence are at an all-time high – this is a worrying combination."

The ONS said the latest statistics may reflect a number of factors, including the “impact of high-profile incidents, media coverage and campaigns on people’s willingness to report incidents to the police, as well as a potential increase in the number of victims”.

It said the overall number of crimes recorded were lower during lockdowns but that there were “substantial increases" from April 2021, with certain offence types returning to or exceeding pre-pandemic levels.