We’re closing the door on burglars

It’s the most wonderful time of the year, as they say, but not if you become a victim of burglary.

1,025 home burglaries took place between 1 November 2023 and 30 November 2024 in North Yorkshire – so what are we doing about this?

Detective Chief Inspector Matthew Wilkinson said:

“North Yorkshire Police have launched Operation Cracker to target burglars over the festive period.

“We know that historically, in the winter months, the number of burglaries committed rise, with burglars using the cover of darkness to commit crime.

“We are committed to taking a zero-tolerance approach to burglars.

“As part of Operation Cracker, we will be increasing our patrols across the region up to and including  Christmas. Both high visibility and plain clothed officers will be out proactively deterring, disrupting, and catching those who commit burglaries.

“We are also asking for our communities to help and support us - we know that one in three burglaries are because homes are being left insecure. So, our Neighbourhood Policing Teams will be out in our communities, leaving our mark in the form of a footprint to encourage householders to lock their doors and help us stamp out burglaries.’’

We know the number of burglaries taking place is not good enough, but we are seeing improvements. For week commencing 9 December 2024, county-wide burglary is down 1.8% compared to last year. For the city area, it is down by 11%, on the coast it is down by 16.4% and the Scarborough area is down by a great 25.2%.

Some good news as well… for positive outcome rates we are up by 2.7% to 9.41%. And in the last 28 days, our positive outcome rate for residential burglary was 14.86%. We are committed to both preventing burglary and holding those accountable when burglaries take place.

Here are a few tips to help keep your home safe and sound:

• Make sure front and rear doors are shut and locked – both when you leave the house but also on your return. If you lock the door behind you, it reduces the chance of forgetting it later and leaving it unlocked for thieves.
• Use a timer to switch on lights to make the house appear occupied, even when it isn't - LED energy saving bulbs can help keep the cost down and reduce fire risk as they don't heat up.
• The most common items taken in a burglary are car keys, cash and bank cards so keep them out of sight and not within reach of windows or letterboxes.
• Don't leave spare keys in obvious places such as under doormats or plant pots.
• Always make sure any sheds and outbuildings are locked.

Receive news and alerts about crime in your neighbourhood and sign up to North Yorkshire Community Messaging

• This is a free email alert service from North Yorkshire Police
• Our local teams use the system to let you know what's happening in your area, including burglary prevention advice and property marking events.
• You can sign up to receive alerts about events, crime appeals, safety advice
  and much more.
• The alerts can be tailored to where you live and work

You can help us reduce crime where you live. Please remember – if you see a crime in progress, ring us on 999 immediately. If you see any suspicious behaviour, you’re not wasting our time, please call 101. If the crime has already happened and the suspect has gone, call 101 or report online via our website.