Bolton: Sexual offences at a record high in the borough

More sexual offences were recorded in Bolton in the year to September than ever before, new figures from the Office for National Statistics (ONS) show.

A total of 1,166 offence of this kind were logged by Greater Manchester Police in the borough in that time, up from the previous 12 months when the number was 949.

This is the most since records began in September 2007.

The Crown Prosecution Service says there are a range of crimes that can be considered a sexual offence, including non-consensual crimes such as rape or sexual assault, crimes against children including child sexual abuse or grooming, and crimes that exploit others for a sexual purpose, whether in person or online.

Cllr Mudasir Dean, Bolton Council cabinet member for stronger communities, says that it was “disturbing” to hear about the rise in sexual offences in Bolton.

Cllr Dean (Image: Newsquest)

He added: “These types of crimes often have a lasting impact on the victim both physically and mentally which can last for a long period and sometimes for the rest of their life.

“I hope we will see a reduction in these figures from September onwards because policing has increased in the borough. I will be keeping a close eye on it.

“The people committing these crimes need to be in court and they need to be punished. We need to put out a strong message to these people.

“Police need to do everything in their capacity to ensure that these crimes do not go unpunished.

“Anybody who see anything needs to contact the police or Crimestoppers.”

The increase is part of a national rise across England and Wales which saw an increase in logged sexual offences of 17 per cent to nearly 200,000.

However, the ONS has urged caution when interpreting the data on sexual offences, which could be affected by a “number of factors” including improvements in how police record crime as well as victims being more willing to come forward and report incidents in light of high-profile cases and campaigns.

READ MORE: Man charged with sexual assaults

Meghan Elkin, from the ONS, said police-recorded crime figures are a "better indicator of police activity", rather than a reliable insight into crime trends.

Greater Manchester Police in Bolton is actively attempting to combat these types of crimes. 

Operation Lioness came to the borough last year, the focus of which was to tackle violence directed at women who are enjoying a night out.

GMP launch night-time operation in bid to make women feel safer

Over a nine-week period more than 60 arrests were made alleged offences committed against women.

And the Ask for Angela campaign has been operating in Bolton for a number of years.

The national campaign encourages women who are feeling unsafe on a night out to covertly express those concerns to staff by asking for someone called Angela. 

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