New car crime figures show worst hit neighbourhoods in Peterborough

More than 120 car crimes in city were reported to police in just one month

New car crime data from police has revealed the worst hit neighbourhoods in Peterborough.

The figures from data.police.uk show the number of thefts, break-ins and vehicle tamperings across the city during March this year.

It comes as police forces across England and Wales recorded more than 30,000 car crimes in March.

They show that in Peterborough, the Orton West and Caster neighbourhood was the worst hit with 17 reported car crimes, which made it the 12th worst-hit area in the East of England.

Thirteen vehicle crimes were recorded in the Peterborough Central neighbourhood over the same time – 12th worst in the region – while Fengate & Parnwell along with Orton Malborne & Goldhay had nine reported car crimes each and were both the 66th worst hit spots in the East of England.

The neighbourhoods of Fletton and Hargate & Orton Longueville both had eight reported car crimes each in March, putting them in joint 82nd spot for the region’s worst areas.

Central Park and North Bretton & Westwood along with West Town & Woodston reported six car crimes over the same month while the three neighbourhoods of Dogsthorpe, Hampton Vale, Paston and Stanground had five recorded car crimes each and there were four in Walton.

There were three reported car crimes each in the neighbourhoods of Barnack, Wittering & Wansford, Bretton Park and Werrington.

In Eye & Thorney and Millfield & Bourges Boulevard there were two each and just one reported car crime each in Longthorpe & Netherton and Newborough & Peakirk.

It means the toal number of reported car crimes in the Peterborough local authority area in March was 121.

The figures also show that across the Cambridgeshire Constabulary area in March there were 453 reported car crimes. For a region with a population of 896,800 people this is a crime of 50.5 per 100,000 people. The 13th worst performance in the UK.

Neighbouring Northamptonshire police area was slightly worse with 402 reported car crimes and a crime rate of 51.1 per 100,000 people.

The figures also reveal that West Midlands Police was found to have the highest vehicle crime rate in the country in March, recording 113.6 incidents per 100,000 people across the force area, which includes Birmingham, Wolverhampton and Coventry.

This was followed by London’s Metropolitan Police which recorded 99.7 incidents per 100,000 people, then South Yorkshire Police, at 87.1 incidents per 100,000 people.

Dyfed-Powys Police, which covers Carmarthenshire, Ceredigion, Pembrokeshire and Powys in Wales, had the lowest vehicle crime rate in the country, recording 8.5 incidents per 100,000 people. Vehicle crimes with no recorded location were excluded.

Across England and Wales, police have so far closed nearly two-thirds of cases without identifying a suspect (63 per cent). One-third (33 per cent) of vehicle crimes from March were listed as still under investigation.

Fewer than one per cent of incidents have so far resulted in court action or a caution, although this is likely to rise as investigations progress.