Crime on the rise in Barking and Dagenham, official figures show

File photo dated 22/10/14 of a Police officer, as according to new figures, some of the UK's biggest police forces have recorded a rise in the number of violent homophobic crimes this year, with hundreds of assaults on gay and lesbian people reported to police so far in 2014 - including more than 300 in London alone. Scotland Yard recorded 1,073 violent homophobic offences between January and October, up from 1,007 in 2013 and 1,002 in 2012.

Crime has risen over the last year in Barking and Dagenham, official police records reveal.

The Met Police recorded 20,448 offences in Barking and Dagenham in the 12 months to March, according to the Office for National Statistics.

That was an increase of 10% compared to the previous year, when there were 18,601.

And, at 95.5 crimes per 1,000 people, that was higher than the rate across England and Wales, which stood at 89.3.

Of the crimes recorded in the area over the last 12 months, 703 were sexual offences – an increase of 26% from the year before.

Meanwhile, violent crime has risen in the area, from 6,404 to 7,124 over this period.

One of the main factors behind this increase was the rise in violence without injury, which rose by 18%, from 2,482 incidents to 2,918.

And theft offences rose by 11%, with 6,932 incidents recorded in the 12 months to March.

At 32.4 crimes per 1,000 people, that was higher than the rate across England and Wales, which stood at 25.1.

Crimes recorded in Barking and Dagenham included:

703 sexual offences, a rise of 26%7,124 violent offences, a rise of 11%1,511 incidents of criminal damage and arson, up 16%1,634 drug offences, down 5%161 possession of weapons such as firearms or knives, down 19%1,424 public order offences, up 19%6,932 theft offences, a rise of 11%2,103 stalking and harassment offences, up 5%