Crime levels in the Thames Valley are continuing to fall, according to figures published today by the Audit Commission.

And Oxfordshire Fire Service was praised as one of the most effective in the country in the report.

For the fifth year in succession, crime has fallen and the chance of being a victim of crime is down 25 per cent since 1992/1993.

The reduction is just one of the plus points from the Audit Commission performance indicators, which compare Thames Valley Police's performance with other forces across the country.

There was room for improvement, however, in the force's crime detection rate, which fell just below the national average of 26 per cent. Asst Chief Con Paul West, of Thames Valley Police, said: "We are firmly committed to working with local communities to reduce crime, disorder and fear.

"These indicators are a strong reflection of our performance in achieving that." Fire chiefs welcomed joint-top billing with Northumberland and Mid and West Wales in responding to emergency calls.

And they pointed out that they achieved the excellent performance figures on 33 per cent less funding than the other top-rated brigades.

The fire service has consistently scored top or near top marks in recent years.

Tom Carroll, Chief Fire Officer, whose last brigade was Northumberland, said: "We have a 99.7 per cent success rate of meeting our statutory attendance times and can deliver that on a service that costs less than 5.5p per person per day.

"This is the second time in three years that we have achieved the top position and a testament to the excellent services Oxfordshire County Council continues to provide, despite being one of the lowest funded councils in the country."

The brigade, however, took the longest out of 49 brigades nationwide to carry out inspections for fire safety certificates.

Aspects of policing reviewed in the performance indicators included crime levels, detection rates, how quickly forces respond to incidents and public satisfaction with the police service.

Story date: Thursday 28 January

Converted for the new archive on 30 June 2000. Some images and formatting may have been lost in the conversion.