Monthly 1-1 with Shropshire Commander

Shropshire's Police Chief is Superintendent James Tozer and it was a pleasure to be able to congratulate him in person on remaining in post after a minor "reshuffle" of Superintendents across West Mercia and Warwickshire Police.  Supt Tozer is a really focussed and talented officer and knowing that Jim will continue to work for the public of Shropshire is very reassuring and a great comfort as I begin to wind up my role as Shropshire Policing Board Chair.

Supt James Tozer

At this monthly 1-1, we looked in detail at some of the crime figures and we continued to examine burglary numbers in particular.

Overall, the number of recorded crimes in Shropshire is down - good news.

The areas showing an increase are mainly those associated with "acquisitive crime" - in other words, crimes where someone is trying to make money by stealing, robbing etc. Is this related to the state of the economy locally?  Probably, but there are other factors at large too I'm sure.

In these areas of burglary, robbery etc. the detection rates are up which means that more people are being arrested and charged than previously.  Huge efforts are being made to track down the individuals responsible whilst at the same time villages and towns which have been affected by domestic burglaries, for example, are having leaflets put through letterboxes by the police reminding home-owners to keep their properties secure.  Many if not most burglaries are opportunistic whereby the criminal spots an easy opportunity (an open window or unlocked door) so taking basic precautions can make the difference between becoming a victim and not.