Crime across the UK fell by 25 per cent thorough the lockdown period, according to the National Police Chiefs’ Council.

Assaults, rape, residential burglaries, individual robberies and vehicle crime all fell sharply after restrictions were imposed in a bid to contain the spread of coronavirus.

But what kind of pattern did we see in and around Andover?

The Advertiser has looked back through Hampshire Constabulary’s crime data to find the most commonly committed crimes in Andover and its surrounding areas during April, when lockdown measures were in full swing, as well as where those crimes were recorded.

The numbers show that the national trend was generally mirrored at a local level, with crime in the town dipping by 27 per cent month-on-month.

However, other areas surrounding the town recorded the same, or even greater, levels of crime in April than in March.

The following maps show where those crimes were recorded, as well as the most commonly reported offences for each area.

 

Andover town: 284 crimes reported in April (down from 353 in March)

Andover Advertiser:

Crime in Andover town dipped by 27 per cent from March to April.

The map shows that most crimes were concentrated in and around the town centre, with other clusters of crime reported around King Arthurs Way and Augusta Park, as well as Walworth and Picket Twenty.

But while overall crime saw a reduction, anti-social behaviour went the other way - increasing by 27 per cent from March. It was also ever so slightly higher than the figure recorded in April of last year.

Most commonly reported crimes in April 2020:

  • Violence and sexual offences - 105
  • Anti-social behaviour - 73
  • Public order - 30
  • Criminal damage and arson - 18

 

Andover east: 22 crimes reported in April (down from 25 in March)

Andover Advertiser:

Most crimes in April were committed in the Clatfords and Abbotts Ann area, according to the map, with just a handful reported in Longparish and Barton Stacey.

Eight vehicle crimes were reported in March, but this figure dropped to zero in April.

Burglaries, however, rose from just two in March to seven in April.

Most commonly reported crimes in April 2020:

  • Burglary - seven
  • Anti-social behaviour - six
  • Violence and sexual offences - four
  • Criminal damage and arson - three

 

Andover north: 34 crimes reported in April (up from 20 in March)

Andover Advertiser:

Andover north, which encompasses Hurstbourne Tarrant, Charlton, and even Thruxton and Shipton Bellinger to the east, actually recorded a month-to-month rise in crime in April.

This included nine crimes in Shipton Bellinger and six in Thurxton.

The number of violence and sexual offences in the area almost doubled, increasing from seven in March to 12 in a April.

Most commonly reported crimes in April 2020:

  • Violence and sexual offences - 12
  • Anti-social behaviour - seven
  • Criminal damage and arson - four
  • Burglary/public order - three

 

Andover south: 35 crimes reported in April (the same as March)

Andover Advertiser:

The same number of crimes were recorded in Andover south, which covers Stockbridge, the Wallops, Grateley and Amport, in both March and April.

And year on year the figure sky-rocketed, rising by 250 per cent from the 14 recorded in April of last year.

Burglaries, however, dropped dramatically month-to-month, with 14 reported in March and just two in April.

Most commonly reported crimes in April 2020:

  • Violence and sexual offences - nine
  • Anti-social behaviour - seven
  • Public order - six
  • Vehicle crime - four