Crime on the rise in Lewisham, 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 Lewisham, official police records reveal.

The Met Police recorded 27,555 offences in Lewisham in the 12 months to March, according to the Office for National Statistics.

That was an increase of 2% compared to the previous year, when there were 26,919.

At 90.3 crimes per 1,000 people, that was in line with the rate across England and Wales, which stood at 89.3.

Of the crimes recorded in the area over the last 12 months, 812 were sexual offences – an increase of 18% from the year before.

Meanwhile, violent crime has risen in the area, from 8,241 to 8,563 over this period.

One of the main factors behind this increase was the rise in violence with injury, which rose by 7%, from 2,498 incidents to 2,674.

And theft offences rose by 1%, with 10,829 incidents recorded in the 12 months to March.

At 35.5 crimes per 1,000 people, that was far higher than the rate across England and Wales, which stood at 25.1.

Crimes recorded in Lewisham included:

812 sexual offences, a rise of 18%8,563 violent offences, a rise of 4%2,131 incidents of criminal damage and arson, up 3%1,594 drug offences, up 1%304 possession of weapons such as firearms or knives, up 20%2,253 public order offences, up 6%10,829 theft offences, a rise of 1%2,587 stalking and harassment offences, down 1%