SWINDON people can find out more about crime in their area following the launch of an online map.

Wiltshire Police worked with the National Policing Improvement Agency for months ahead of the launch of the “crime map” on Wednesday.

The map allows anyone with an internet connection to find out how many crimes have been committed in their neighbourhood over the last three months.

It also allows people to analyse the average level of burglary, robbery, vehicle crime, violence and anti-social behaviour, as well as reviewing how many of those types of crimes have been committed in the last year.

Chief Superintendent Paul Howlett, of Swindon Police, said: “One of the things that challenges us is peoples’ fear of crime is very often disproportionate to crime levels.

“It is really important that people are kept informed and that they understand the challenges, so we can work together to find the remedies.”

Details of neighbourhood police teams — including photos of police officers and police community support officers — are also included on the site, as are links to the Wiltshire Police Facebook and Twitter pages.

Acting Superintendent Bob Edge, deputy head of the citizen focus department at Wiltshire Police, said: “Wiltshire Police have been working hard with the national providers of Crimemapper to ensure that local residents have access to information on crime trends in their area.

“As part of our pledge to the public we remain determined to continue to improve the services we provide and the availability of the web based Crime Map forms an important part of this.

“Not only does it allow residents to view local crime statistics, but it also allows comparisons between counties and provides details of our Neighbourhood Policing Teams.

“As the statistics demonstrate, Wiltshire remains one of the safest counties. However we are not complacent and always look for ways in which we can engage with the community for the benefit of us all, and by working together, bring about a reduction in crime.”

To view the map visit http://maps.police.uk/