BLACKPOOL town centre is a safer place for shoppers and pleasure-seekers as crime-rates plummet.

That is the verdict of police, shop managers, pub landlords and councillors in the light of town centre crimes being cut by 24 per cent, according to latest quarterly figures from the Blackpool Community Safety Partnership.

From April to September there were almost 2,000 fewer crime and disorder victims than in the same time last year.

A combination of high-visibility policing, special operations to fend off trouble and teamwork between the police, businesses and the local authority are all helping the crimefight against thieves, muggers and louts.

Marks and Spencer manager Paul Mellor, chairman of the partnership's town centre crime and disorder working group, said: "The figures are very encouraging, not only for the retailers but all the people who work, visit and shop in the town centre who can feel much more confident in the safety standards." Daytime Blackpool was as safe as any comparable shopping centre in the country, he said, and though night-time Blackpool had been intimidating, police had made a big improvement this summer with high-profile patrols around pubs and clubs at closing times, a new Pub-link scheme to warn of troublemakers, an outdoor alcohol ban and friendly warnings to visitors on incoming coaches.

More CCTV cameras, shops' Radio-link and extra security guards and wardens were all helping, he went on. Car crime reduction was particularly good, with nearly 40 per cent fewer thefts in car parks thanks to CCTV and voluntary wardens on busy weekends. "The important thing is it's now not just the police working to reduce crime, but a joint activity involving the police, council and businesses like ourselves," he said.

"That has made the biggest difference - the feeling that there's a lot of concentrated action going on."

Chief inspector for community safety, Mark Bartlett, said: "The figures are tremendous. It's a reflection of the hard work going on throughout the division, with targeted policing, special operations and partnership schemes."

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