Crime and Community Safety



Key Facts and Statistics
 In 2010/11 a total of 90,860 crimes were committed in Birmingham, this represents a 1.1% increase on the previous year, however there has been a 12.3% reduction in crime in Birmingham since 2007/08.   1,384 serious violent crimes were recorded in 2010/11, representing an increase of 0.9% on the previous year but an overall reduction of 10.4% since 2008/09.  Serious Acquisitive crime accounted for 25,079 of the recorded crimes during 2010/11, an increase of 14.6% on the previous year and an overall increase of 5.1% since 2007/08.  There were 8,078 incidents of burglary representing a 13.8% increase on the previous year and a 4.9% increase since 2007/08.  There were 4,850 incidents of robbery representing a 29.4% increase on the previous year and a 23.9% increase since 2007/08.   There were 434 incidents of gun crime during 2010/11, the same amount as in 2009/10, however there has been a reduction of 16.7% in this type of crime since 2007/08.  During 2010/11, 3,418 alcohol involved crimes were reported, a reduction of 22% on the previous year and a reduction of 24.5% since 2007/08.  54,869 ASB incidents were recorded during 2010/11, a reduction of 22.1% on the previous year and 27% since 2007/08. </li> There were 13,513 incidents of criminal damage during 2010/11, a reduction of 6.8% from the previous year and 15.1% from 2007/08. </li>  90% of Birmingham's Residents felt safe during the day in 2010, whereas 57% felt safe after dark. </li>  In 2010, 54.9% of residents felt the Police and local public services were successfully dealing with crime and ASB. </li>

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Introduction
Staying safe in clean, green neighbourhoods is about reducing crime and anti-social behaviour to make people feel safer, alongside improving the cleanliness of local neighbourhoods. We want to protect the most vulnerable children and adults from harm. We also want to make Birmingham a better place to live and work.

Birmingham is one of the safest core cities; however the levels of crime and anti social behaviour are significant issues which face any urban area. Levels of crime can impact on how residents view their neighbourhood as a place to live, and it can also affect the desire of people to visit or to invest in an area.

Overall Crime Rate
Since 2007 overall recorded crime in Birmingham has fallen by over 12% meaning that in 2010/11 there were 13,000 fewer crimes than in 2007/8. However in the last 12 months crime has started to rise again. Due to location of the city centre, crime rates for most crime types are highest in Ladywood ward. .





Serious Violent Crime Rate
Serious Violent Crime (SVC) includes murder, manslaughter, attempted murder, wounding or other act endangering life, grievous bodily harm, causing death by a driving.

Since 2007 serious violent crime in Birmingham has fallen by over 10% meaning that in 20010/11 there were nearly 200 fewer victims than in 2007/8. However this reduction in crime has not been uniform across the city. Some constituencies such as Edgbaston and Northfield have seen this crime type reduce by over 30%, whereas other areas such as Sutton Coldfield have seen a slight increase in the most serious violence.



Robbery
Since 2007 Robbery in Birmingham has increased by around 24%. This has been driven by a near 30% increase in the last 12 months alone. Ladywood constituency saw a 50% increase in Robbery levels between 2009/10 and 2010/11. .



According to research by Safer Birmingham partnership, 70% of robbery victims and 90% of robbery offenders in Birmingham are Male. 57% of victims are White Skinned European, 26% are Asian and 9% are African- Caribbean. Robbery in Birmingham is predominately centred around young people. Victims and offenders are likely to be aged between 10-20 years old with the peak age for victims being 16 and 17 for offenders. Due to this age of a robbery victim- the property they are most likely to be targeted for are mobile phones, cash and jewellery..

Criminal Damage
Criminal damage refers to crimes where a person intentionally or recklessly destroys or causes damage to another person’s property. Criminal damage includes vandalism, graffiti, arson and other forms of damage to property, including vehicles. Crimes of this type can affect a person’s confidence in an area and their perceptions of their own safety.

As the chart below indicates, levels of this crime have reduced significantly in recent years. Since 2007 criminal damage in Birmingham has fallen by over 15% with a near 7% reduction between 2009/10 and 2010/11. .



Perceptions of Crime
Measuring people’s perceptions and feelings with regards to crime and disorder is important because it has been shown nationally that there is often a disparity between what recorded crime is telling us and what people feel in terms of safety. As the chart below left indicates, the majority of people in Birmingham feel safe, although people feel less safe at night. The chart below right shows how residents perceive crime has changed in the past 12months. The low proportions agreeing and disagreeing indicates that most people think either crime has remained the same, or they are not aware of how crime has changed.

The charts below measure resident perceptions around how local public services deal with crime and anti-social behaviour. The chart on the left shows that an increasing proportion of people feel that they are now more informed about what is being done about ASB. The chart on the right indicates that the majority of people in Birmingham agree that ASB and crime are successfully being dealt with. While the proportions who agree has significantly increased in the past 12 months, so has the proportion of people who disagree.

The chart below shows that perceptions differ across the city, with a much smaller proportion of people in Yardley and Hodge Hill agreeing that public services are successfully tackling ASB and crime. However all constituencies saw proportions increase between 2009 and 2010.