STREET robberies and thefts have fallen sharply after the fourth summer clampdown aimed at protecting foreign visitors.

The police’s Operation Buzzard aims to protect the city’s annual influx of about 5,000 tourists and students who can be seen as easy prey for robbers and thieves.

And so far this year, robberies have fallen 46 per cent from 35 to 19, and snatch thefts by 78 per cent from nine to two.

The June to September operation sees two dedicated officers patrol mugging hotspots who are on call to respond to reports quickly.

Police also visit foreign language schools to educate pupils about the dangers of street crime.

Det Sgt Pauline Heilbron, from the Oxford Robbery Team, said: “The combination of everything we have done over the past three years is paying off.

“It’s hard work throughout the year, and the fact that we are always targeting offenders and remanding them. “It has just been paying off.”

She said that incidents of anti-social behaviour in parks by groups of foreign tourists had also decreased. Last year the campaign led to a 32 per cent reduction in robberies compared to previous years.

And Thames Valley Police said most of the offences recorded this year had been against Oxford residents rather than visiting students and tourists.

Ruth Chambers, executive director of the EF International School in Headington, said officer visits gave students a chance to feel comfortable around the police.

She said: “Sometimes our students come from cultures where police have a different profile.”

She said the operation was good news for the city, adding: “Some people might think it’s public resources going in to keep visitors safe.

“But if it helps to keep crime levels down and discourage people from targeting our visitors it can only be a good thing.

“And it shows our city is a place that is safe to be.”

Sgt Rob Axe, from Blackbird Leys neighbourhood team, said students were told not to walk around with expensive phones and cameras on display, and to stay in groups.

He said: “It’s all positive news and it’s not through luck, it’s through hard work. Oxford is not a bad place. It’s just historically robberies do go up in the summer periods when we have foreign students come here.”