CRIME has fallen over the last year in North Worcestershire, official police records reveal.

West Mercia Police recorded 17,195 offences in North Worcestershire in the 12 months to March, according to the Office for National Statistics.

That was a decrease of 18% per cent compared to the previous year, when there were 20,945.

At 60 crimes per 1,000 people, that was far lower than the rate across England and Wales, which stood at 77.6.

Crimes recorded in North Worcestershire included:

651 sexual offences, a decrease of six per cent

7,406 violent offences, a decrease of five per cent

1,782 incidents of criminal damage and arson, down 20 per cent

587 drug offences, up six per cent

197 possession of weapons such as firearms or knives, down 22 per cent

1,276 public order offences, up one per cent

4,795 theft offences, down 37 per cent

2,598 stalking and harassment offences, up 20 per cent

Overall, police recorded 13 per cent fewer crimes, excluding fraud, across England and Wales, with around 4.6 million offences in the year to March.

The ONS said the annual drop was helped by a "substantial" fall in crime during April last year, when the first lockdown restrictions were introduced.

The number of recorded crimes increased between July and September, it added, before decreasing again as lockdown measures were imposed toward the end of last year.