Crawley is among the least peaceful places in the county to live, according to a report which compares the levels of murder, violent crime, weapons offences and public disorder.
The UK Peace Index, produced by the Institute for Economics and Peace, ranked the town 215th out of 343 council areas in the country and scored it lower than its neighbouring towns in Sussex.
The report said Crawley had problems with violent crime, weapon crime and public disorder. There was a striking comparison to the town’s neighbours, which appeared in the top 20 most peaceful places in the UK. Neighbouring Horsham was ranked 14th while Mid Sussex appeared eighth in the table. However, Crawley fared much better than Brighton and Hove which came in at 248th.
Chief Inspector Justina Beeken, Crawley District Commander, said: “I welcome the findings of the report and know that the fight against crime in a large and diverse town like Crawley will always be a challenge. We are always looking at new ways in which we can police the town in a way that is tailored to the needs and desires of local residents. Continued partnership work, I believe, is the key to this and we must never become complacent in our efforts to improve the community’s feeling of safety. I know that violent crime is an issue the public want to be addressed, and it is one of my key priorities. However, violent crime encompasses different types of crime, some of which I want to encourage increased reporting of, such as domestic abuse and domestic violence.
“This also holds true for all types of hate crime. Reducing public place violent crime, which is often fuelled by alcohol or other substance abuse, will remain a priority and I am currently looking at a couple of different new initiatives that I hope to bring to Crawley in the coming months. Violent crime itself has not increased significantly in recent months in Crawley, but I’m pleased to say that reporting and recording of such incidents has and this can only be a good thing and will help us tailor our policing to what the community needs.”
Overall the index listed the South East as the most peaceful place to live in Britain.