Northamptonshire crime still on the rise - here are the most common for police to deal with

In total there were 15,244 crimes reported to Northamptonshire Police in the year up to September 2019, the latest Office for National Statistics report shows.

The previous 12 months saw 14,725 crimes, equalling a 3.52 per cent rise - the year before that had 13,801 reports.

There were 3,901 assaults, both with and without causing injury, while shoplifting was the third most common crime ahead of theft from a vehicle, other thefts and harassment.

One murder was recorded and no reports of manslaughter - a marked reduction from 2018/19 which had six homicides.

Other violent crimes included two attempted murders, five 'endangering life' reports, 25 reports of modern slavery, 30 kidnappings and 87 threats to kill.

A total of 638 sexual offences were reported, including 232 rapes, which has decreased from the previous year.

There were 101 reports of someone in possession of 'an article with a blade or point' and 12 in possession of a firearm plus 'with intent'.

The majority of the 362 drug offences were for possession of cannabis but there were 80 reports of other drugs in someone's possession and 60 examples of trafficking in controlled drugs.

Nationally levels of crime have remained broadly stable in recent years with a decrease in homicides and a rise in burglaries.

Helen Ross from the Office for National Statistics Centre for Crime and Justice said: “In the last year there has been no change in overall levels of crime, however, this hides variations in different types of crime.

"For example, there have been continued rises in fraud, vehicle offences and robbery, and decreases in burglary and homicide.

“Although the number of offences involving a knife has continued to increase, there is a mixed picture across police forces and overall levels of violence remain steady.

"We have also seen the number of homicides where a knife or sharp instrument was used decrease by a fifth, driven by falls in London.”