Police and Crime Commissioner Angelique Foster has welcomed new figures which prove her three-year plan to crackdown on burglary is delivering strong results.
Since the Derbyshire Police and Crime Commissioner was elected by the public in May 2021, residential burglary rates across the county have fallen by 18 per cent.
Data shows 6,180 domestic burglaries were recorded between 26 June 2019 and 12 May 2021 which fell to 5,086 offences between 13 May 2021 and 31 March 2023 - a period representing the Commissioner's time in office.
During the same comparison period, burglary offences involving business premises also plummeted by 11 per cent.
Many areas of the county continue to see significant reductions in year-end residential burglary rates in comparison to pre-Covid figures with Chesterfield, South Derbyshire and Derby City recording particularly large drops at 47 per cent, 39 per cent and 35 per cent respectively.
Neighbourhood crime including burglary is a priority in the Commissioner's Police and Crime Plan and she has consistently invested in extra resources, service changes and technology to help officers improve their investigative capabilities and deliver a higher standard of service to the public.
Commenting on the new performance figures, Commissioner Angelique Foster said: "I'm about to enter my third year as Derbyshire Police and Crime Commissioner and it is good to see significant progress has already been made to deliver on my Police and Crime Plan priority to tackle burglary.
"Burglary is an invasive and distressing crime and people were fed up with the lack of interest shown previously in tackling this type of crime. It is vital the police take this seriously and treat victims of burglary with respect regardless of where they live. Crucially, we want to see that the force continues to work robustly to meet the clear expectations I've set out in my Plan.
"I will continue to scrutinise their progress and ensure the new resources and strategies put in place are delivering the high standard of service the public expect."
To meet the Commissioner's high standards, Derbyshire Constabulary was one of the first forces nationally to announce a commitment to attend all home burglary offences - long before it became a national target.
The force now has one of the highest attendance rates of Crime Scene Investigators (CSIs) in the East Midlands region, reassuring victims that their report of burglary is being treated seriously and that officers are doing everything possible to investigate the offence, improve the quality of evidence and deliver a positive outcome.
In January, the force launched a Neighbourhood Acquisitive Crime Team (NACT) at North and South divisions to target offences such as burglary, robbery and theft. The teams are focusing on outstanding suspects for burglary to ensure opportunities to secure arrests are maximised and that reoffending is prevented.
Following a recent restructure there is now a dedicated team of intelligence officers allocated to acquisitive crime research (burglary, theft, robbery offences) who support the NACT teams in identifying trends, hotspots areas and key suspects to enable them to take proactive action.
Meanwhile, work is ongoing to develop a ‘burglary pack' containing key security advice and information for victims as well as checklists for officers allowing them to complete information on the property stolen. This will ensure every effort is made to recover stolen property and investigate further offences such as handling stolen goods.