Witham's police team has succeeded in putting the town at the top of the district's crime busting league.

Across the whole of the Braintree division - one of the largest in the county - they are top at beating four out of six major types of crime and second at the other two.

"Everyone is working well together, police, public, council and town organisations and it is producing excellent results," said Witham's Insp Alan Cotgrove this week.

"Everyone deserves a pat on the back as the figures are still going up," he said.

"We need the continued help of the public to beat crime."

In the four months from April to July there were 674 crimes in Witham tackled by the town's 30 police constables, six sergeants and inspector.

Their "war on crime" league record:

Overall detection rate 35 per cent - above the Essex Police force average of 29.4 per cent.

Home burglaries: out of the 26 crimes, 19.2 per cent were solved.

Commercial burglaries: of the 63 crimes, almost 40 per cent were solved against Essex's average of 14.2 per cent. In July Witham's hit rate rose even higher to 43 per cent.

Vehicle thefts: of the 32 crimes 25 per cent were solved against Essex's average of 16.4 per cent.

Criminal damage: of 190 crimes 32.6 per cent were solved compared with a county average of 16.4 per cent.

Offences against people: out of 57 crimes, almost 79 per cent were solved compared with a county average of 67 per cent.

This puts Witham top of the Braintree division in solving assaults, criminal damage, vehicle theft, and home burglaries, and second in beating thefts from vehicles and commercial burglaries.

The figures were released by Insp Cotgrove at a meeting of the Police and Community Consultative Group at Witham on Monday.

And in another move to boost police performance in rural areas around Witham, a plan to focus a new Community Police Team in Kelvedon for outlying villages was unveiled this week.

The change is part of the new Rural Policing Strategy developed by Essex Police and will mean an end to the traditional working of local beat officers from their police homes in Rivenhall, Silver End, Faulkbourne, Terling, Feering, Coggeshall, White Notley, Fairstead and Hatfield Peverel.

Instead they will be based with a police sergeant at Kelvedon, where one of the existing police houses is being converted to offices to house the new team.

The project is costing £50,000 and, says Essex Police Estates spokesman, Cliff Collings: "Will result in an upgraded service where the resources of a complete team are available to residents, instead of just one local police officer, who may well be out on tour when someone needs them."

Eileen Davidson, Braintree councillor for Kelvedon, said: "The point about the village police constable not being available when people need them, is true and this will help. I accept that some people in the villages might not feel so secure, but overall this is an essential part of the policing strategy for the next century."

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