Violent crime has risen in Flintshire over the last year, statistics show.

Data from the Office of National Statistics show 4,679 incidents of violent crime in Flintshire in the 12 months to June

That was an increase of 22 per cent compared to the previous year.

At 30.1 crimes per 1,000 people, that's slightly higher than the rate across England and Wales, which stood at 28.7.

One of the main factors behind the increase was the increase in stalking and harassment, which rose by 67 per cent, from 888 incidents to 1,485.

Offences of violence with injury increased by three per cent and violence without injury by 12 per cent, reaching 1,294 and 1,895 respectively.

There were also three homicides, which include murders and manslaughters, up by three on the previous 12 months.

Overall, police recorded seven per cent more crime across England and Wales – there were more than 6 million offences in the 12 months to June.

The biggest hike was in stalking and harassment, which jumped by 37 per cent to 459,000.

However, the ONS said improvements to reporting and recording practices by police could be behind the increase.

The total number of offences in Flintshire increased by 14 per cent, with police recording 11,451 crimes (excluding fraud) over the course of the year.

This puts the overall crime rate at 73.6 per 1,000 people, compared to a national average of 89.3.

Commenting on the figures, Assistant Chief Constable Sacha Hatchett said the force will continue its core mission to make North Wales the ‘safest place’ to live.

She said: “Whilst these figures may seem to indicate an increase in crime, they also reflect the public’s confidence to report incidents to North Wales Police.

“As a result, we are investigating more complaints, which in many cases lead to further subsequent investigations.

“The integrity of our data recording processes will inevitably account for some proportion of these figures.”

“The continuing success of our specialist resources in areas such as modern day slavery, online child sexual exploitation, and our sexual assault referral team – Amethyst, mean that we are investigating (and therefore recording) more as a force. It is encouraging to note that recorded sexual offences have seen a significant reduction year on year.

“However, the increase in racially or religiously aggravated crimes reflects the excellent work of our diversity team and our local policing services in increasing the confidence of victims to report such incidents.”

Other crimes recorded in Flintshire included:

  • 482 sexual offences, a decrease of four per cent
  • 2,643 theft offences, a decrease of 13 per cent
  • 1,381 incidents of criminal damage and arson, down one per cent
  • 208 drug offences, down 19 per cent
  • 72 possession of weapons such as firearms or knives, up 33 per cent
  • 1,021 public order offences, up 50 per cent

ACC Hatchett said: “I am encouraged that the Crime Survey of England and Wales shows the public of north Wales continue to be at one of the lowest risk of personal and household crime, and we will strive to maintain the excellent relationship with our communities, who provide critical information to help bring offenders to justice - for which we are very grateful.”

“As a force, we continue to deal with the challenges posed by the changing nature of crime, including online fraud and cybercrime, as well as the issue of County Lines. Indeed, our focus on the Police and Crime Commissioner’s plan to tackle organised crime, domestic violence, modern slavery and human trafficking, and sexual abuse inevitably results in our recording more crimes.

She added: “Whilst this report reinforces the robustness of our crime recording systems, it also highlights the dedication and tireless efforts of officers and staff across the force, who continue to work hard and adapt to ever changing demands.

“It does not, however reflect our success in dealing with unrecorded tasks such as tracing missing persons, dealing with vulnerable people and policing our roads, which place an ever increasing demand on our resources.

“We remain committed to making north Wales the safest place to live in the United Kingdom, and will continue to work hard to achieve this.”

The full figures can be found via the ONS website.