Crime mapping: informative or just scaremongering?

Crime mapping: informative or just scaremongering?

John Corrigan was looking out of the window of a hair salon that has graced Glover’s Court, just off Preston’s main shopping street, for the past 50 years.

Glover's Court in Preston is allegedly the most crime-ridden street in England and Wales Photo: GOOGLE STREETVIEW

By Nigel Bunyan 8:00AM GMT 02 Feb 2011

“Does this look like a war zone?” he asked. “Of course it doesn’t. This is all just scaremongering – and all they’ve done is to tarnish the good name of this street for no good reason.”

In the wacky world of Government statistics, Glover’s Court emerges as the most crime-ridden street in England and Wales.

Anyone brave enough to log on to www.police.uk will be `informed` that last December this 200-yard stretch bore the brunt of 152 incidents of reported crime. Of these, 44 involved violence and a further 73 bore the catch-all tag of anti-social behaviour.

In the real world, as Mr Corrigan espoused, that is pure bunkum.

Local statistics confirm that there were no more than three crimes committed in the street in December, and that each of these was minor.

Chief Supt James Lee, of Lancashire Police, was shocked to learn that a commercial street boasting a bridal shop and a branch of Waterstone’s should be portrayed as something akin to the new Beirut.

“It’s a statistical anomaly,” he said. “The 150 crimes relate to the whole city – not just this single postcode. It is actually a safe place to be.”

Mr Lee, who would have been surprised to see Preston secure 100th place in the table, let alone first, added: “The only difference between here and the likes of Liverpool and Manchester is that Preston’s city centre is small and theirs both have a number of post codes.”

Yvonne Robinson, who bought her own wedding suit (correct; it wasn’t a dress) in the street 39 years ago, had just emerged from the hairdresser’s.

“I don’t need a website to tell me where’s safe and where’s not safe,” she said.

“It’s just common sense. I wouldn’t necessarily want to walk down here at night because of all the youngsters out for the evening, but in daylight it’s fine.”

Jav Patel, 27, a consultant with High Flyers Recruitment, was already fretting about the unjustified stigma being attached to the street.

“I gave my card to someone in Manchester this morning and he looked at the address and said `Oh, that’s not a nice place to be`.

“I didn’t know what he meant and when he explained I just laughed. I’ll have to ring him up now to explain. All this is just a massive blunder”.

Some in Glover’s Court fear that insurance companies will seize upon the Home Office website - developed at a cost of £300,000 - as a justification for increasing premiums.

One complained: “That would be completely unfair. As I see it, this is information that no one wants, no one has asked for – and which is wrong”.

Andrew Forster, the manager of Loft, one of four nightclubs in the street, was simply angry.

“This shouldn’t have happened have happened. We have excellent relationships here and only on Saturday we received an accolade from the police. All they’ve done is to pick on a postcode”.

Simon Nash, who lives in nearby St Austin's Place, said: "I have lived here for eight years and have never seen one crime.

"As a resident it's cheesed me off as it isn't a violent place to live".

ends

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Telegraph.co.uk