Police plea to report rural crime

Cumbria Police said people in rural communities may not see the point in reporting crimes

Police say rural crime is going unreported as there is "a lack of confidence" that anything will be done about it.

Cumbria Police has appealed to remote communities to still tell them about incidents involving fuel or machinery theft and poachers, but also to report things like suspicious cars and activity to help build a bigger picture.

Rural crime Sgt Amanda McKirdy said officers "can't possibly be everywhere all the time, but the local community are".

"We're really trying to kind of crack through some myths out there that 'no-one cares' or 'no-one will do anything'. We absolutely do care," she said.

National Farmers Union (NFU) Mutual's latest crime report estimated the north-west of England incurred £2.9m in rural crime costs in 2024.

The insurance firm said offenders had become "increasingly organised, serious and persistent" in recent years.

Sgt McKirdy said there had been a historic "lack of confidence" in policing in rural areas.

She said: "If they don't have any CCTV, if no-one's seen it, they might think 'we're not going to be able to do anything, anyway. In which case, what is the point?'"

"People have one bad experience and that kind of sticks with them."

Letting it go unreported runs the risk of playing into the criminal's hands, Sgt McKirdy said.

The force's rural crime team, which was established in 2023, also encouraged residents to report out-of-place people and vehicles.

She said community intelligence, however innocuous, had helped the team track offenders.

"We're not always going to be able to attend every report there might be of a suspicious vehicle, but we need to know about it," Sgt McKirdy said.

People can get in touch over the phone or online portals, she said, adding: "We'd rather know - or be told 10 times - than not be told at all."