THE cost of rural crime in North Yorkshire has fallen by almost £200,000 in the last year.

A new report released by rural insurer NFU Mutual looked at the cost of rural crime in 2017 and found that while England and Wales saw an increase of 13.4 per cent in 2017, North Yorkshire dropped by 16.7 per cent in the same period - from £1,146,371 in 2016 to £954,597 in 2017.

Police say the figures showed significant progress has been made to tackle rural crime in North Yorkshire, following the launch of the Rural Taskforce in April 2016, which sees a team of officers, PCSOs and staff work with rural communities to tackle rural crime.

Assistant Chief Constable Amanda Oliver, of North Yorkshire Police, said: “We take rural crime extremely seriously, and this reduction is testament to the hard work, professionalism and dedication of our Neighbourhood Policing Teams and Rural Taskforce, as well as the vital support we get from those who live and work in our rural communities. The figures show that we are making significant progress here in North Yorkshire.

“However, we are certainly not complacent, and we recognise that there is more to do. We are committed to continuing to improve the policing service we provide to our rural communities.”

Recent results of the National Rural Crime Survey showed perception of police in rural North Yorkshire was better than the national average, with 38 per cent stating they felt police were doing a good job, compared to the national result of 27 per cent.

Police and Crime Commissioner Julia Mulligan said the fall in rural crime was welcome but more needed to be done.

She said: “This report from NFU Mutual reinforces the findings of the recent National Rural Crime Survey that crime is a significant challenge for North Yorkshire’s rural communities. However, it also reinforces that significant progress is being made to address these challenges in North Yorkshire.

“NFU Mutual finds the cost of crime here is down 16.7 per cent in the past year compared to a 13 per cent increase across the UK. This is on top of the Rural Crime Survey’s results which show our North Yorkshire Rural Taskforce is having an impact at improving the way police are perceived to be dealing with rural crime. Of course, there is always more to do. We need to understand rural crime and its impact, and put that understanding into practice.”