Derbyshire one of the safest counties in England and Wales

Derbyshire is one of the safest counties in England and Wales, Government figures show.
Police face 'serious emerging issues' to deal with in Derbyshire, according to the county's top cop.Police face 'serious emerging issues' to deal with in Derbyshire, according to the county's top cop.
Police face 'serious emerging issues' to deal with in Derbyshire, according to the county's top cop.

With 48.4 victim-based crimes per 1,000 people in Derbyshire in the year up to last June, the area comes 40th in a list of 42 counties.

West Yorkshire ranks number one in the list with 101.7 victim-based crimes per 1,000 people living there.

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According to the Home Office, the findings are proportional to the amount of people living in each police force's area.

Police face 'serious emerging issues' to deal with in Derbyshire, according to the county's top cop.Police face 'serious emerging issues' to deal with in Derbyshire, according to the county's top cop.
Police face 'serious emerging issues' to deal with in Derbyshire, according to the county's top cop.

Top police chief comments

Peter Goodman, Chief Constable of Derbyshire Constabulary, said he was 'proud' of the data - but warned the force had 'serious emerging issues' to tackle.

Mr Goodman said: "I am pleased to see that the latest figures show that Derbyshire is one of the safest places to live in the UK.

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"However, we have said for a long time that reported crime is not the best way of looking at the impact of crime and does not reflect people’s real experience.

"Rather it is merely what is reported to the police and then recorded by us - almost completely ignoring the experience of the most vulnerable in society who are far less likely to report incidents.

"In Derbyshire we are much more interested in the broader picture of victimology provided by the crime survey of England and Wales. We believe this should become more in-depth and include the experiences of businesses and younger people.

"We pride ourselves in Derbyshire in being one of the forces most willing to turn over the stone and find criminality, however, the challenging and changing face of crime means that we must always be looking at new and innovative ways to keep our county safe.

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"Issues such as cybercrime, modern slavery and county lines drugs networks are just a handful of examples of the types of crimes that 15 years ago would have been unthinkable. These types of crimes simply don’t get recorded through traditional means and in a short period of time have become serious issues for not only Derbyshire but across the UK.

"So, while I am proud and pleased to see these numbers, I am acutely aware that we have serious emerging issues to tackle alongside strengthening the neighbourhood policing which is the bedrock of our protection of the people of Derbyshire."