MORE than 7,000 crimes in Taunton were reported to police in a 12-month period, new figures reveal.

The crimes, an average of 19 a day or one every 75 minutes, saw officers responding to more incidents in the town centre than anywhere else in the area.

The data was released by Avon and Somerset Police for the period from May 2015 to April 2016, and showed anti-social behaviour crimes and violent and sexual offences were the most commonly reported.

The five areas covered in the report were Taunton Central, West Taunton, East Taunton, North Taunton and Halcon.

In total, 7,030 crimes were reported to police, with anti-social behaviour the most commonly reported crime, with 2,300 reports – an average of six a day.

There were also 1,538 reported violent and sexual offences – an average of four a day.

Overall, May and June were the months with the highest levels of crime in the town, and 40 per cent of reported incidents resulted in no further action being taken.

Taunton Central was the area blighted most by crime, with an average of nine offences reported each day.

Parking areas saw the most reported crime in the area, with almost one a day, and 57 thefts, including shoplifting.

There were 231 crimes reported in East Street alone, including 81 incidents of anti-social behaviour and 13 incidents involving drugs.

Other crime hot-spots in Taunton Central included North Street, The Bridge, and Station Road.

In North Taunton, there were 1,203 reported crimes, more than three a day, with more than 10 per cent of those in or around supermarkets.

There were 42 incidents reported in Cheddon Road, including 13 cases of violent and sexual offences. Orchard Green, Pickeridge Close, Barlinch Close also saw high levels of reported incidents.

In Halcon, there were 902 reported crimes with 151 crimes reported on Creechbarrow Road alone, of which 118 were theft related, including shoplifting.

Inner Circle, Roman Road, Outer Circle all saw more than 30 reported crimes over the past 12 months.

In West Taunton, there were 719 reported incidents, nearly two a day on average, and Hilly Park was the highest with 43 reported crimes.

There were also 44 incidents reported on or near petrol stations in West Taunton, and Collett Road, Franklin Close and College Road were also crime hotspots.

There were, on average, more than two crimes a day reported in the East Taunton area. Hankridge Way saw 50 reports, with almost one incident per week, including 15 cases of anti-social behaviour.

There were also 33 reported crimes on or near Motorway Service Areas, with over half of these involving theft.

In Wellington, 919 crimes were reported over the period in the Wellington Town area, and 544 in the Wellington Rural patch.

Chief Inspector Lisa Simpson, Local Policing Commander for Somerset West, said: “I live in Somerset and I firmly believe we have one of the safest counties in the country.

"People should be reassured that these figures are comparatively very low in relation to other areas.

“This doesn’t mean we are complacent; we remain absolutely dedicated to preventing and detecting crime in our community, supporting victims and working together to keep people safe.

“It’s important that our communities understand the facts that sit behind the numbers; statistics alone can be misleading and alarming, and don’t necessarily always reflect the true picture.

“For the public’s peace of mind, it is important to note that the classification ‘sexual offences and violent crime’ includes a whole range of incidents, from low-level verbal abuse to grievous bodily harm (GBH).

“The term can be misleading, as it doesn’t necessarily mean any physical violence has occurred, and the majority of incidents will most likely be low-level public order offences.”

Andy Sharman, co-ordinator of Somerset West Businesses against Crime, said: “The situation is challenging, the police are doing a good job in the face of all the budget cuts in budgets.

“The statistics for shoplifting are a big issue because we don’t want people to think Taunton is an easy place for shop theft. We are working in good partnership with the police and local businesses to further reduce levels of crime in the town, and we are seeing some positive results.”

CRIME HOTSPOTS:

These are the number of offences reported on streets or areas during the 12 month period:

Taunton Central
On or near Parking Area - 347
East Street - 231
On or near Shopping Area - 229
On or near Supermarket - 189
North Street - 149
The Bridge - 133
Station Road - 130
Fore Street - 119
On or near Petrol Station - 88
Blake Street - 67

Map of crime hotspots - Taunton Central:

North Taunton
On or near Supermarket - 134
Cheddon Road - 42
Orchard Green - 37
Pickeridge Close - 36
Barlinch Close - 31
Rydon Lane - 31
Winslade Close - 31
On or near Parking Area - 30
Ladymead Road - 28
Obridge Lane - 27

Map of crime hotspots - North Taunton:

Halcon
Creechbarrow Road - 151
Inner Circle - 46
Roman Road - 36
Outer Circle - 31
Hamilton Road - 29
York Road - 29
On or near Supermarket - 27
Hamilton Court - 28
Leycroft Grove - 28
Raps Close - 27

Map of crime hotspots - Halcon:

East Taunton
Hankridge Way - 50
On or near Motorway Service Area - 33
Stoney Furlong - 33
On or near Shopping Area - 27
Bridgewater Road - 26
On or near Parking Area - 21
Brittons Ash - 20
On or near Further/higher Educational Building - 19
Kendall Close - 18
Mattock’s Tree Hill - 18

Map of crime hotspots - East Taunton:

West Taunton
On or near Petrol Station - 44
Hilly Park - 43
Collett Road - 29
On or near A358 - 28
Franklin Close - 16
On or near Sports/recreation Area - 16
College Road - 15
Cornishway North - 15
Station Road - 15
Chilliswood Lane - 13
Great Western Way - 12

Map of crime hotspots - West Taunton: