BURGLARY and violent crime in Lancashire has fallen following a major shake-up of the force, it has been revealed.

Break-ins at homes dropped from 18,089 to 16,708 according to the latest figures from Lancashire Constabulary.

And the number of violent crimes fell from 3,610 to 3,573.

The decrease comes after a rise in the number of incidents during the previous 12 months.

The force recently underwent a radical restructure with the creation of six new police divisions and "leaner" departments.

Chief Constable Pauline Clare said the drop in violent crime was a result of a number of initiatives including special operations. She added: "All in all, we are well on our way to fulfilling our commitment and our aims of creating a much more flexible organisation, willing and able to respond to the diverse and varying needs to the communities we serve.

"The new structure has ensured divisions are largely self-sufficient, managing their own resources, finances and staff."

Sex crimes in Lancashire rose to 718 from 661 the previous year and the number of murders dropped by two.

Arson saw a rise with 14,103 incidents compared to 11,769 last year.

Overall there were 109,524 crimes committed with 35,552 being detected against 112,404 crimes the previous year with 38,418 detections.

The Chief Constable added: "I am fortunate in the quality of my command team, in the loyalty of my colleagues, both fellow officers and support staff and in the unstinting support I have had from the Police Authority.

"It is for these reasons I remain confident we will continue to provide the high quality service the people of Lancashire deserve."

Figures also showed the force answered 96 per cent of all 999 calls within two seconds with 97.5 per cent of incidents being attended within 15 minutes.

There were 21,119 fixed penalty speeding fines in the county and 4,814 drivers being prosecuted for speeding offences.

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