Crime falls across region

The number of people who are the victims of serious crime in the West Midlands has fallen by 11,000.

The British Crime Survey figures published by the Home Office on Thursday reveal there were 11,000 fewer victims of serious crime in the region than in the previous 12 months.

Overall crime in the West Midlands was down by 5.8% compared to the national fall of 2%.

The crime detection rate for the region was 26.3% compared to the national average of 23.5%.

Robbery down

Robbery figures in the West Midlands were also down by almost a quarter.

West Midlands Police said that as a result of its initiative Operation Safer Streets robbery figures were down by almost 23%.

Another crime fighting initiative, Operation Safer Homes, has also been hailed a success with house burglaries down by almost 14%.

The region's figure for total violent crime was down by 5.5%.

West Midlands Police said the figures were welcome and they hoped to build on their success and tackle people's fear of crime.

The figures show that in total overall crime across Britain fell by 3%.