The number of crimes recorded from April to September has risen by four per cent, with a “worrying” increase of 18 per cent in the number of criminal damage incidents.

Inspector Andy Thomas, Bridgnorth’s police chief, said the figures were disappointing and showed the first increase in crime for the past couple of years.

He said: “It is only a relatively small increase but it is disappointing to have seen an increase in overall crime.

“It is particularly worrying to see an increase in the number of criminal damage offences and we will be focusing on that to see if we can bring that down with the more proactive use of CCTV to both prevent and detect offences.

“I am pleased to see we are continuing to clear up more crime, with an increase from 28 per cent to almost 33 per cent in overall crime, which is exceeding the targets set.”

The figures were compiled by Inspector Thomas to show comparable crime statistics from April 1 to September 20 compared to last year.

He said there was some good news, with vehicle crime reducing by 11 per cent and violent crime down by four per cent.

And seven new local police officers were beginning to improve public confidence in more rural areas of the patch.

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