Silent Crime: YEP survey finds majority of Leeds residents say crime has increased

We asked residents to tell us if they’ve been victims of crime and their thoughts on unreported crimes and offences in the city, following the launch of our Silent Crime campaign, which aimed to highlight low-key crime across the city.

And, in response to our survey, readers have reported an increase of crime across Leeds - and called for more action from police.

During the campaign, we’ve spoken to people affected by “blatant” motorcycle thefts, women who are “afraid” to walk the streets at night and staff who have witnessed a rise in shoplifters “ransacking” shelves. A former police officer also told us about the frustrations felt within the force, where there are restrictions on how they can respond to crime.

Our survey returned dozens of responses and offered a fascinating insight into how residents feel.

Reporting crime

Nearly half of all respondents said police had not been informed when they had either been a victim of a crime (45.2%), had witnessed a crime (43.3%) or knew someone who had been a victim of a crime (41.4%) in the last 12 months.

Some of the most commonly mentioned crimes included assault, theft and anti-social behaviour (including graffiti and youth disorder), while others said they had been affected by harassment and witnessed drug dealing.

Asked why these matters were not reported, most people expressed their lack of faith in reporting matters to the police.

One respondent said they had reported drug-taking before and police “weren’t interested”, while another said they didn’t report a matter due to “previous experience and lack of help from police”.

Reflecting on why they hadn’t reported a crime they had witnessed, one respondent said they felt it was “so common these days”, adding: “[I] thought I might bring trouble myself.”

Others, meanwhile, expressed fear about “potential repercussions” if they reported the matter and one person said they were “too scared to report it”.

Police action

We also asked people if they had reported a matter to the police where no further action was taken in the last 12 months, to which 16 out of 31 (51.6%) said ‘yes’. They went on to say that the offences included knife crime, drug dealing, speeding, vandalism, motorbike theft, assault, criminal damage and stalking.

Tellingly, a significant number of respondents answered ‘yes’ (87.1%) when asked the question: ‘Do you feel the level of crime has generally increased in that area?’.

This was also a prevailing theme while speaking with residents on the ground, as many said that they felt like crime was more common than it once was.

Asked what sort of crimes were becoming more prevalent, 11 people mentioned drug crime, while others highlighted motorcycle thefts, shoplifting and burglaries.

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What can be done

We received a variety of suggestions when asking what could be done to encourage members of the public to report crime and engage with police.

There were calls for “much more visible community police presence” and “evidence of action taken” by the force, with one person saying that “knowing there is the capacity in the police force to follow up reports” would encourage people to come forward.

One person said: “We need to be taken seriously and not just given a crime number. The police don’t act on information when people know who has their bikes and the address the stolen bikes are stored. Also more local police on the beat like the old days.”

Another person said that “less fear of repercussions” would encourage them to report information to the police, while another said he was dismayed “ridiculous sentences” he claimed were being handed out.

What do police say

A West Yorkshire Police spokesperson said: “Tackling neighbourhood crime remains a challenge across all our communities here in Leeds. We do however have dedicated teams working in the district who are responsible for investigating crimes such as burglary, robbery, vehicle and retail crime, as well as anti-social behaviour.

“Our officers work daily to tackle these issues with our partners and to maximise positive criminal justice outcomes.”