Lewisham police station Pic: David Anstiss

A committed effort by Lewisham police to reduce burglary rates has resulted in the lowest number of recorded cases in 17 years.

In June 2014, 166 offences were recorded, the lowest monthly total since April 1997 and down a substantial 37 percent from June last year.

Together with Lewisham Council, the charity Victim Support and the Probation Service, Chief Inspector Graham Price and his team have worked to improve burglary rates in Lewisham, and to sustain the level of reduction.

Between June 2013 and June 2014, the number of reported burglary offences were 2,761, nearly 1,000 less than the previous year.

Price said: “We have seen a big decline in the last 12 months. This is due to the concentrated and focused activities of police and partners to address this challenging area of police work.”

The decline in burglaries is an encouraging sign that the situation in the borough is improving, having found itself above the London average for residential burglaries in recent years.

“Lewisham was traditionally a major crime generator. We have worked hard to reduce the level of burglaries in the borough, and to reduce the number of victims in the community,” said Price.

Police burglary statistics for Lewisham Pic: Met

A series of measures have been implemented to reach this goal, among them working with second-hand shops.

“We have worked with second hand shops to better recognise stolen items and report those supplying them, making it less lucrative for individuals to carry out this form of crime,” said Price. “People won’t steal goods if they can’t sell them off later.”

Another successful initiative has been the ‘Street a Week’ programme through which 50 streets across Lewisham most prone to burglary were identified.

“Together with our partners we have delivered burglary prevention advice to locations where historically burglaries occur,” said Price.

“Overall, crime in Lewisham is down and confidence and satisfaction levels are starting to increase.”