The city is generally a safe place to live and work, although of course there are crimes reported to take place there each month. In November 2016, for example, 484 crimes were reported in the St Michael’s policing area of the city. This takes in the most central part of the city.
Did the last 12 months reveal some crimes to be more common than others?
It did. When we explore the figures for the year from December 2015 through to November 2016 in more detail, we can see anti-social behaviour crops up as the most oft-reported crime. Some 1,692 crimes of this nature were reported to the police, which accounted for 26.87% of the total crimes for that year. This falls roughly in line with the percentage noted in some other major cities across the UK.
Meanwhile, violence and sexual offences saw the next-highest set of figures overall. Some 1,123 crimes were reported in St Michael’s for that year. This contributed 17.83% to the total crimes for 2015-16.
Burglary is a crime many people are worried about, and there were 351 reported occasions of this happening for the area in Coventry last year. However, it only accounted for 5.57% of the total crimes people reported during that period. Meanwhile, vehicle crimes and bicycle thefts came out almost identically, taking up 5.35% and 5.08% respectively.
What do the crime statistics for Coventry tell us?
Being able to interpret crime statistics can be useful. For starters, we can see whether certain crimes are blown out of proportion by the media, and whether others do not perhaps receive the headlines and recognition they should.
Protecting ourselves from harm is vital and it is important to try and do whatever we can to continue that. You can protect your home by making it less appealing to break into, for example. Add prickly bushes to deter thieves from getting into your garden. Install CCTV cameras to keep an eye on your doors and windows
