Serious theft crimes down by a huge 30pc

Robberies, burglaries and car thefts in Staffordshire have fallen by almost a third, latest figures show.

Police revealed there were 167 "serious acquisitive crimes" recorded across the county in November – down from 239, or 30 per cent, compared to the same month in 2010.

In Cannock Chase the number of robberies, burglaries and car thefts almost halved, down to 42 from 81. There were 69 in South Staffordshire, down from 93, and 56 in Stafford, nine fewer than in November 2010.

Police chiefs and council community safety bosses said they were pleased with the figures but vowed to do more to drive crime down.

Assistant Chief Constable Jane Sawyers said: "We are very pleased that our figures continue to show crime falling.

"Our officers and staff work really hard to reduce crime and less crime means less victims of crime.

"We are particularly pleased with the falling crime in relation to burglary of people's homes, robbery and vehicle crime as these are the crimes which our community tell us they are most concerned about."

David Pearsall, chairman of Staffordshire Police Authority, said the trend was particularly pleasing as the force was facing "challenging" times.

Staffordshire Police needs to make £38million of cuts over four years.

"Most importantly, those crimes which Staffordshire citizens tell us matter most to them are continuing to fall markedly and this is a real tribute to the excellent support and cooperation we receive from local communities," he added.

Staffordshire community safety chief, county councillor Robert Marshall, said: "We will continue to work with the police on various initiatives to combat crime and reassure our residents that we want to see even more reductions."

Half-year figures released earlier also revealed falling crime.

From April to September there were 33,730 crimes, down from 37,292 for the same period last year.