Despite a national increase, new figures show that knife and gun crime has decreased in Thames Valley in the past year.

The area is at odds with the trend across England and Wales, where knife and gun crimes have risen in the last year.

Anti-knife crime charity The Ben Kinsella Trust said not enough is being done to tackle the problem.

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Recent figures from the Office of National Statistics show Thames Valley Police recorded 1,239 offences involving a knife or sharp object in the year to March, down 12 per cent from 1,408 the year prior.

It was down from pre-pandemic levels, with 1,591 offences logged in the year to March 2020.

It means the rate of knife crimes stood at 49 per 100,000 people last year – below the national rate of 82 per 100,000.

Despite a national increase, firearm offences fell in the area as Thames Valley Police recorded 44 crimes last year, down from 51 the year prior.

There were two gun offences for every 100,000 people in the area last year, while the overall rate across England and Wales was 10 per 100,000.

Nationally, 48,900 knife and sharp object offences were recorded in the past year – up from 44,600 the previous year, but below 55,100 in the year to March 2020.

Patrick Green, CEO of the Ben Kinsella Trust, said the national increase in knife crime demonstrates that "despite lots of tough talking and promise", not enough has been done to tackle the problem.

Mr Green added: "With more austerity cuts looming, we must not repeat the mistakes of the past and reduce police funding and cut youth services."

"Only through strong enforcement and investing in prevention and early intervention services can we hope to make any headway against this growing menace."

Police forces across England and Wales also recorded a slight increase in firearm offences – there were 5,750 in the year to March, up from 5,715 the year prior.

The Home Office said an increase in the number of violent crimes recorded in recent years is thought to be driven by improvements in police recording practices.

The figures show 115 people were hospitalised nationally due to an assault with a firearm and more than 4,000 were hospitalised for assault by a sharp object last year.

A Home Office spokesperson said the figures fail to account for the impact of the pandemic on crime and added the levels of knife crime and offences involving a firearm remain lower than they were before the pandemic.

“We are determined to tackle violent crime and it is why police funding this financial year will total up to £16.9 billion, with the number of officers on our streets already at a 10-year high thanks to the Police uplift programme," they added.

 

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This story was written by Matthew Norman, he joined the team in 2022 as a Facebook community reporter.

Matthew covers Bicester and focuses on finding stories from diverse communities.

Get in touch with him by emailing: Matthew.norman@newsquest.co.uk

Follow him on Twitter: @OxMailMattN1

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