RECORDED crime in Herts fell in most categories in the year up to this March – but house burglaries have risen. National crime statistics released this week show that for the 12-month period between April 2007 and March 2008, overall recorded crime in the

RECORDED crime in Herts fell in most categories in the year up to this March - but house burglaries have risen.

National crime statistics released this week show that for the 12-month period between April 2007 and March 2008, overall recorded crime in the county fell by 12 per cent, violent crime by 21 per cent and robbery by 23 per cent.

But although burglary fell overall, house burglaries rose by 5.6 per cent up from their lowest ever level in 2006/7.

Herts Police said that major operations, often in partnership with neighbouring forces because many criminals travelled into the county to commit crime, had been held to tackle the issue.

And the police also maintained that since April this year, the number of burglars caught and brought to justice had more than doubled.

Higher-than-average figures for drug offences also appeared in the statistics but the police argue that reflects their strong action on tackling drug trafficking in the county.

The statistics show that rates of crime in the county remained low across main categories compared to the national picture and the Herts detection rate rose to 30 per cent -- two per cent above the national average.

Knife crime does not emerge as a major problem in Herts. The Home Office statistics list 222 knife and sharp-instrument serious offences in the county for 2007/8 compared with 7,428 in the London region and 22,151 nationally.

Commenting on the figures, Chief Constable Frank Whiteley, said: "These figures mean that there are fewer victims of crime in the county and that criminals are more likely than ever before to be caught and punished for the crimes they commit.

"The results reflect the excellent work being carried out by the officers and staff of Herts Constabulary alongside our local partners. Herts is a safe county in which overall crime is continuing to fall.