A THREE-YEAR strategy aimed at reducing crime, disorder and road casualties in the Ribble Valley has been launched.

And the battle will be staged on six key fronts -- property crime, anti-social behaviour, violent crime, substance abuse, youth intervention and road safety.

These are the areas of concern identified after a crime audit by the Ribble Valley Crime and Disorder Reduction Partnership which has launched the strategy and is made up of agencies including the Ribble Valley Council, Lancashire County Council, the probation service and police.

"Fear of crime is very high in the Ribble Valley, particularly in isolated communities," said Bill Alker policy officer at Ribble Valley Council.

"Our main problem is travelling criminals and theft of and from cars. Underage drinking is also a problem and there are increasing levels of domestic violence in the area."

The aim of the partnership was to bring bodies together in a more cohesive approach to crime prevention.

The strategy outlines several measures aimed at tackling the problems and the partnership has already received funding for a number of initiatives.

It has received nearly £50,000 from Government for three years to employ drugs workers and buy a police vehicle for covert drugs surveillance work.

It also received £10,000 to improve security for small retailers in outlying Ribble Valley villages.

Mr Alker continued: "Our strategy is a living document, which will evolve and respond to the changing nature of crime and disorder. It aims to improve the quality of life for people who visit, work and live in the Ribble Valley. Hopefully, it will help the community feel safe, involved and reassured."

The partnership has established a number of working groups which meet monthly to look at each of the six problem areas identified in the strategy and devise a series of initiatives aimed at tackling the six key areas of concern.

The Lancashire Evening Telegraph revealed last month that domestic violence in the Ribble Valley nearly doubled last year.

KEY POINTS

The Ribble Valley Crime and Disorder Reduction Partnership aims to reduce burglaries by four per cent, car crime by one per cent and the number of people killed or seriously injured on the area's roads from 76 to 45 by 2005.

The audit reveals that over 70 per cent of reported crime in 2001 was committed in five communities in the borough: Clitheroe, Longridge, Whalley, Billington and Read/Simonstone.

The number of reported crimes were: Clitheroe - 629, Longridge - 286, Whalley - 158, Billington - 116 and Read/Simonstone - 105. A total of 554 crimes were reported throughout the rest of the borough.

Criminal damage accounted for 21 per cent of reported crime, with vehicle crime a close second at 20 per cent, domestic burglary at 13 per cent and violent crime at 10 per cent.

The audit states that criminal damage has increased dramatically by 136 reported crimes over a two-year period, with Clitheroe suffering the most significant increase.

Damage to the grounds of Clitheroe Castle accounted for a disproportionate number of the reported offences, with damage to vehicles a close second.