More than £1.8 million has been invested to tackle crime in Cambridgeshire and offences cut by over a third in 12 months.

The figures are outlined in an annual report by police and crime commissioner Darryl Preston for April 2021 to March 2022, his first year in office.

Over this period, neighbourhood crime had been reduced by 38 per cent with a record number of police officers signing up to Cambridgeshire Police.

“The good news is that we now have record numbers of warranted officers in our county – currently over 1,650 – with this figure set to rise to 1,700 by next March,” said Mr Preston.

"We also saw a significant reduction in neighbourhood crime thanks to the efforts of officers and partners with household burglary, in particular, down by 47pc.”

Over £1.8m has been brought in to help support victims of crime, make streets safer through environmental improvements such as lighting, and training for security staff to help them spot signs of predatory behaviour.

Mr Preston has also invested £263,000 towards youth offending services to help prevent young people re-offending, as well as support to six community safety partnerships to tackle crimes such as fly-tipping.

"And rural crime is down by 48pc when compared to the same period in 2020/21 as a result of targeted action by the Constabulary's Rural Crime Action Team,” said Mr Preston.

An extra £78,000 of funding was made available to fund one-to-one support for 130 rape and sexual violence survivors in the county under Mr Preston’s leadership.

In July, Cambridgeshire Police was told it ‘requires improvement’ in investigating crime and the time it takes to respond to the public.

The report by Roy Wilsher, HM Inspector of Constabulary, found that “there are some areas in which it needs to improve”.

Figures collated by the Independent Office for Police Conduct showed that 993 allegations relating to complaints over delivery of duties and service were made to Cambridgeshire Police between April 2021 and March 2022.

“Listening and acting on the concerns of local residents is the most important part of my job and I remain committed to doing just that,” Mr Preston added.

“There is always more work to be done.”