THERE were more than 22,000 crimes recorded in Bury last year, with one street seeing more than 250 incidents.

Silver Street, in Bury town centre, is top of the list according to police recordings of crime from September 1 2017 and August 31 2018.

Of the top ten streets, seven are in Bury, with two in Prestwich and one in Radcliffe.

Crimes are recorded by category and the most common type of incident in Bury falls under violent and sexual offences, making up more than a quarter of all crime. This covers a wide range of offences, from minor assaults such as pushing and shoving through to serious assaults, murder and sexual assault.

The second most common kind of offences are anti-social behaviour and public order issues, also making up another quarter of all incidents between the two.

Chief Inspector Phil Spurgeon, of GMP’s Bury borough, said the force had made changes in how it recorded crime over the past two years, and it was now more victim-led. They had also encouraged reporting of traditionally under-reported crimes, such as domestic abuse, stalking and harassment.

The top ten streets are:

1. Silver Street, Bury – 251 crimes recorded

2. John Street, Bury – 222 crimes recorded

3. Back Market Street, Bury – 155 crimes recorded

4. Buller Street, Bury – 153 crimes recorded

5. Brunswick Street, Bury – 151 crimes recorded

6. Rochdale Road, Bury – 148 crimes recorded

7. Hilton Lane, Prestwich – 136 crimes recorded

8. Bury Old Road, Prestwich – 116 crimes recorded

9. Rough Hill Lane, Bury – 108 crimes recorded

10. Church Street West, Radcliffe – 105 crimes recorded

Inspector Spurgeon warned that while crime stats and mapping prove useful to the force, it is important to look at the bigger picture.

He added: “Crime statistics and mapping, and what they tell us about victims, offenders, locations and different types of offending behaviour are crucial in helping us target resources where they are most needed to make our communities safer.

“However, it’s important not to simply rely on those statistics and maps, but also look behind the numbers and give them context where we can.”

One explanation for some of the top streets on the list is that officers record crime by a street near a particular landmark. For example, Rough Hill Lane is the road leading into Fairfield General Hospital, so incidents reported at the hospital are likely to be marked down on that particular road.

Similarly, Brunswick Street is adjacent to Woodfields Retail Park, which may explain the numbers of crimes recorded there. Meanwhile, while Back Market Street appears third on the list, Inspector Spurgeon says the force has not recorded any specific crimes on the street during the 12 months in question.

He added that the crimes recorded there are likely to be reports from surrounding streets and premises.

“Crime mapping tools will often ‘pin drop’ to a specific location, with data from nearby premises and streets,” he said.

“If we just relied on the crime mapping alone, we could target our police and partnership resources in the wrong way; for example, installing expensive CCTV in the alley, rather than tackling issues nearby.

“But through analysis and working with partners and the community, we better understand the context of those crime figures and maps. So we know that the ‘top three’ streets of Silver Street, John Street and Back Market Street feature because they are high footfall town centre areas in both the daytime and night time. “

In order to tackle the levels of crime and anti-social behaviour in the town’s hotspots, in particular in and around the town centre, police say they are continuing to work with partners, including Bury Council.

The work involves using ‘intelligence-led initiatives’ to support businesses that have been repeatedly targeted, as well as identifying repeat offenders.

“We’re fortunate that Bury has a vibrant and growing town centre economy, both daytime and night time,” said Inspector Spurgeon.

“That success has been hard fought for, and cannot be taken for granted, which is why our policing teams work very closely with partners, local businesses, community members and voluntary groups, to make the town centre safer.

“The reality is however, with the largest footfall outside of Manchester city centre and The Trafford Centre, we will unfortunately see anti-social behaviour and crime in our town centre.

“Thankfully, really serious crime remains rare; I’d like to think that partly reflects the proactive and preventative partnership working that takes place.

“In the town centre, our policing teams work particularly closely with Bury Council’s community safety and CCTV teams, to prevent crime, and take action against those offending or causing anti-social behaviour.

“With our partners, we deliver focussed initiatives across a wide range of licensable activity; including responsible alcohol sales, taxi and private hire safety work.

“We are proud that Bury has secured Purple Flag status, the only town across Greater Manchester to do so, which is only awarded if there is strong evidence of good management of the evening and night time economy offer.

“Local policing teams support those night time initiatives through Operation Orion, which sees us working in partnership with many teams to keep people safer, and with dedicated officers providing high visibility patrols in key areas at busy times.

“Ironically, it’s the presence of these officers that often contributes to the higher crime figures in those areas; people are more able and inclined to report issues to the officers in the street than they may have otherwise done, and officers are often spotting things, nipping them in the bud, and recording minor public order crimes in accordance with the more robust national standards.”

Bury’s crime figures were taken from data provided by GMP.