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Beatcrime Frequently
Asked Questions
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What is West Yorkshire Police Authority?
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| West Yorkshire Police Authority is made up of 17 members who are responsible for ensuring West Yorkshire is policed effectively and efficiently. They work with the public, obtaining information from them about policing needs, using this to set policing priorities and providing information about how well the police are performing.
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Why has the Police Authority launched this website?
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| We feel it is important to let people know about crime in their area. Most people hear about crime by word of mouth or through the media and don’t have a really accurate picture of what’s going on. By showing you what is happening and where, we hope you’ll want to do something about it.
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Will the download speed for "dial-up" internet users improve?
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| We are currently in the process of developing the site to improve the speed of downloading the pages for those with "dial-up" internet access.
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What is a District? |
| West Yorkshire is divided into 5 Metropolitan Districts; Bradford, Leeds, Calderdale, Kirklees and Wakefield. |
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What is a Division?
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Each District is divided into Policing Divisions, of which there are 9 in West Yorkshire.
| DISTRICT | POLICING DIVISIONS |
| Bradford | 3 Divisions: Keighley, Bradford North, Bradford South |
| Leeds | 3 Divisions: City and Holbeck, North East Leeds, Pudsey & Weetwood |
| Calderdale | 1 Division covering the district; Calderdale |
| Kirklees | 1 Division covering the district; Kirklees |
| Wakefield | 1 Division covering the district; Wakefield |
Day to day policing within each Division is the responsibility of a senior police officer, the Divisional Commander, who leads a team of police officers and police staff based at a number of police stations or other buildings within the area.
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What is a beat?
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Each division is divided into a number of smaller areas called police beats. This is currently the smallest and therefore most local area for which crime data is available.
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How do I find my beat?
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There are 2 options; either type in your postcode in the box provided in the top right hand corner of the screen OR click through the map using your mouse cursor.
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How do I interpret the table?
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Because beats are of different sizes, it is difficult compare crime levels in one area with another. It is more useful to look at crime rates – which show, on average, how many out of a given number of people or households are likely to experience this offence in a year. The example in the table below may help you interpret the data - but please remember that the rates for town and city centres will be distorted because the residential population is very small.
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Over The Last 12 Months
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Beat name
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This Month
In This Area
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Total For This Area
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For Every 1000 households
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In The Area
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In This Division
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In This District
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In West
Yorkshire
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Burglary dwelling
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7
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132
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22.8
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24.0
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31.8
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24.3
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What does this mean?
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7 crimes
(in this case burglary dwelling) were recorded in this month in
your local beat area
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Looking back over the last 12 months, 132 burglaries were
recorded
in this beat
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Given the number of households living in this beat, this means
that, on average, almost 23 out of every 1000 households were burgled last
year
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Because this is lower than the 24.0 burglaries per 1000
households in the division as a whole, the burglary rate in this beat is
slightly less.
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Both the beat and the divisional burglary rates are less than
that for the district as a whole.
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The rates for the beat and the division are the same or less than
the average for West Yorkshire as a
whole. The District rate is higher.
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Why is there sometimes no data in the bar charts?
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Normally this means that no crimes of that type were recorded during the month.
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What is domestic burglary/vehicle crime/violent crime/other violent crime/youth nuisance/anti-social behaviour?
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To find out what is covered by each offence name, select the crime type you want to view from the drop down menu on the right of the page. You will now see a table at the bottom of the page. Click on the name of the crime type e.g. ‘Youth Nuisance’ in the far left column of the table and this will bring up a definition of this crime type.
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What do the dots represent?
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Each dot marks the approximate location of one or more alleged offences of a particular type reported to West Yorkshire Police. The display is intended to provide an indication of where these alleged crimes occurred. Because of the complexities of the processes used to generate the images, and because each dot spans at least 100 metres, the pattern should be interpreted as being indicative only (also see answer to ‘Why do the dots sometimes not match the numbers in the tables?).
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Why are there no dots on the burglary maps?
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| Burglary is an offence where the location of the crime can identify the victim. In the vast majority of cases, the size of dot we use means that many properties are covered, making it impossible to identify a specific property or individual. In some cases, however, where the maps are quite small scale or properties are isolated, this may not be the case. We are awaiting legal advice about how many properties must be covered by a dot to ensure privacy is protected. We then intend to act on this advice and produce a display for burglary.
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Why do the dots sometimes not match the numbers in the tables?
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Less dots on the map than in the table:
Not all crime locations are displayed. In particular, we have taken steps to avoid displaying locations that might allow an individual to be identified.
Some locations may be the scene of more than one offence – for example car parks. A single dot may represent multiple crimes or incidents occurring at the same location.
More dots on the map than in the table:
The location shown on the map is that entered at the time the crime is first recorded. At present, this cannot be changed. Occasionally inaccuracies are discovered and the crime counts for the beat are adjusted accordingly. The most accurate count is therefore the figure shown in the table.
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Where can I get further information and advice?
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| Towards the bottom right-hand side of each page there is a button marked ‘What can I do about crime in my area?’. Clicking on this will take you to a list of links to information that will help you prevent yourself and others from becoming a crime victim.
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When will the data be next updated?
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The data is updated monthly, usually around the 15th of each month.
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Who compiles the data?
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The data is supplied by West Yorkshire Police Force from their crime and incident recording systems.
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How does this local crime data compare to national crime levels?
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For information on the national picture of crime, use the text link provided at the bottom of each page to go to the British Crime Survey pages of the Home Office website. Whilst the data in the British Crime Survey is not directly comparable, it does help provide an overview of the national picture and trends.
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Can I give you feedback on the site?
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| Yes, on each page there is a link to a feedback form. We’d be pleased to hear what you have to say.
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