Derbyshire robberies rise by 13 per cent in the past year, new crime figures show

There were 718 recorded robbery offences across the county in the year to March 2023 according to the Office for National Statistics – up from 635 the year before.

However this year’s figures do show a decrease from pre-pandemic levels when 806 robbery offences were recorded in the year to March 2020.

Across England and Wales there were 75,300 robberies recorded in the most recent year – a jump of 13 per cent from 66,300 in 2022. But compared to 2020, records of the offence were down by 17 per cent.

In Derbyshire 3,498 sexual offences were recorded in the past year – up 26 per cent from 2020.

Throughout England and Wales sexual offences remain higher than pre-pandemic levels with 195,300 offences recorded by police in England and Wales last year - up slightly on 193,600 in 2022 but a leap of 20 per cent from 163,400 in the pre-pandemic year.

Commenting on the findings, a spokesman for Derbyshire Constabulary pointed out that robbery saw “significant decreases” during the pandemic.

He added: “While there has been an increase in incidents in 22/23 compared to 21/22 there is a very positive drop in offence rates of 11 per cent in comparison to the 19/20 statistics – the last year in which there were no restrictions.

“During 2020 and 2021 the whole country saw huge restrictions on our movements due to the impact of COVID-19.”

Commenting on the rise of domestic abuse reports, the spokesman said: “These restrictions had a profound impact on offenders’ ability to carry out certain types of crimes – as well as stopping some routes for people to report incidents, in particular domestic abuse.”

The spokesman added that an area which had seen significant increases in reporting was sexual offences.

He said: “We know that across the country these offences are under-reported - and therefore seeing more people coming forward and accessing the support on offer is a very positive step.

“We would urge anyone who has been a victim of this type of offence to come forward and report this to the force. We take all reports seriously and will investigate diligently and thoroughly – as well as provide support to help those who have survived such traumatic incidents.

"While both the increased reporting and recording of sexual offences and robbery are in line with national increases it is important to remember that Derbyshire remains one of the safest places to live, work and visit.”

Nick Stripe, from the ONS Centre for Crime and Justice, said some crime types were returning to pre-pandemic levels while others may have been affected by changes in people’s behaviour during the pandemic and the lifting of social restrictions that followed.

He said: "For crimes which are well reported and recorded by the police we can gain additional insight from police data. Knife crime, robbery and firearms offences are all down on March 2020 levels but have seen increases in the past year.

"Overall crime continues to be well below levels seen before the pandemic. This is in large part due to sharp falls in theft and criminal damage."