How safe is the area you live in?

Policing the area

The police CrimeMapper launched two months ago giving anyone the chance to see how much crime there was in their area. The government said it allowed everyone to understand what the risks were but some critics felt the figures lacked explanation.

CT Online reporters Alex Cowley and Melissa Green examine Canterbury's crime figures.

The site created by the National Policing Improvement Agency (NPIA) has been at the centre of a media storm criticising the reliability of statistics. However the Government insists that this development is a crucial tool to “help people engage with the police in a meaningful way.”

The database allows the user to access information on street level crime in their area over the past month.

The crimes are grouped into six areas:

·      Burglary

·      Robbery

·      Vehicle crime

·      Violence

·      Other

·      Anti-social behaviour

The category ‘Other’ includes such crimes as theft, shoplifting and sex crimes.  The NPIA place sex crimes under ‘Other’ to help protect the identity of the victims.

The website which cost £300 000 to create includes information which victims have consented to be used. As a result it is not completely accurate depiction of crimes in the area.

In Canterbury the biggest reported crime in January was anti-social behaviour for which there was 198 published statistics.  The second highest reported crime was ‘other crimes’ which had 143 reported incidents.

Assistant Chief Constable Steve Mortimore, who is responsible for the programme believes it is needed to provide a positive impact on public attitudes and fear of crime. He said “Public reaction to crime and policing information that is tailored to their locality is very positive and helps to enhance transparency and police accountability.”

The NPIA have plans to develop the programme further so that the outcomes of individual court cases can be published. Victims will therefore be able to track the progress of their case.

Mr Mortimore said "We look forward to continuing to be at the centre of the site's development, as it evolves into a key public website for the collection of crime, policing and criminal justice information."

Crimes in the Canterbury area

 Visit the site and find out about the crimes in your area: http://www.police.uk/