Councilllor condemns burglars 'getting off scot-free' with three quarters of Lancashire break-ins over the course of a single year

There were more than 7,600 reported buglaries in Lancashire in the course of a year - but the vast majority went unsolved

The statistics - hidden in the detail of annually published Home Office data - have been highlighted by the Liberal Democrats in the county.

It has prompted the party to call for a return to "community policing" - but Lancashire’s Police and Crime Commissioner says that he has already instigated exactly that approach, while the force itself says it recently committed to sending an officer to the scene of all domestic burglaries.

Stats detailing recorded crime outcomes for Lancashire show that out of the 7,603 burglary offences reported in the county between April 2022 and March this year, 5,682 - or 75 percent - saw the subsequent investigations into the crimes closed without a suspect ever being identified.

Liberal Democrat county councillor John Potter is calling for action to increase burglary detection rates in Lancashire

That is an average of 16 unsolved burglaries a day - although Lancashire does perform slightly better than England and Wales as a whole, where the average proportion of unresolved burglary cases stood at 77 percent in the same 12-month timeframe.

Just seven percent of reported burglaries in Lancashire in that period resulted in a summons or charges being brought against a suspected perpetrator - a total of 537 cases.

The Liberal Democrats in Lancashire have condemned the figures, with John Potter - the party’s Preston West division representative on Lancashire County Council - claiming that burglars are “getting off scot-free” as a result of government inaction.

He told the Local Democracy Reporting Service (LDRS): “Everyone deserves to feel safe and secure in their own homes, but…these figures will bring little comfort to families and pensioners in Lancashire.

Conservative Police and Crime Commissioner Andrew Snowden says that buglary has already been prioritised in a special operation launched by the county's police force

“It’s a disgrace that our local communities are paying the price for the Conservative government’s failure to get tough on burglaries.

“The Conservatives must finally bring back proper community policing - it’s the only way to reverse these shocking figures,” said County Cllr Potter, who also leads the Lib Dem group on Preston City Council.

The party nationally is also calling for a statutory duty to be imposed on police forces to attend all burglaries - a “Burglary Response Guarantee” - along with the resources needed to support it.

However, Lancashire’s Conservative and Police and Crime Commissioner said that the Liberal Democrats had not suggested anything that was not already being done to combat burglary in the county.

Speaking to the LDRS, Andrew Snowden said: "In Lancashire, police already attend all residential burglaries, with neighbourhood officers following up to offer reassurance and prevention advice to victims and surrounding properties.

“I’ve provided additional funding to support ‘Op Defender’, launched last September, to strengthen the Constabulary’s efforts to proactively target prolific offenders and help to ensure that anyone found guilty of this type of crime feels the full force of the law and has their day in court.

"[The Lib Dems] are also asking for investments I have already made in local policing teams. All areas of Lancashire now have dedicated neighbourhood policing teams and open police stations. This is following the investments I made to re-open stations closed by the previous Commissioner and to bring back neighbourhood policing for every area”.

“I'm clear that there is always more to do and I am working closely with the Chief Constable to ensure that Lancashire residents get the policing service they deserve and feel safe in their communities," Mr. Snowden said.

The number of recorded burglaries in Lancashire almost halved between January 2019 and the start of Operation Defender in the county last autumn.

Responding to the Lib Dem concerns, a Lancashire Police spokesperson said: “We recognise the devastating impact burglary has on householders and we take all reports of burglary extremely seriously.

“Last year, we launched Operation Defender, a force-wide campaign funded by Lancashire’s Police and Crime Commissioner to crackdown on residential burglary. Part of Op Defender is a commitment to visit every victim of residential burglary.

“We are striving to improve the quality and outcomes of investigations into dwelling house burglaries, [which] is being done with further training for officers and partners and by targeted patrols.”

Meanwhile, in a statement, a spokesperson for the Home Office said: “The Home Secretary wants forces getting the basics right – deterring crime and catching more criminals. That’s why she’s called for every force to send an officer to investigate the scene of every home burglary - and delivered more police officers in England and Wales than ever before.

“As of 31st March, 2023, 99.6 percent of police and community support officers were employed in frontline roles. Since 2010, our communities are also significantly safer, with neighbourhood crimes including burglary, robbery and theft down 51 percent.”

For information on how Lancashire residents can keep themselves and their property safe, visit: www.lancashire.police.uk/burglary.