THE MOST crime-ridden place in Havering has been revealed as Romford after the launch of a new website that allows residents to search offences in the borough street-by-street.

The new site, called Crime Mapping, shows that in December last year there were 648 incidents reported in Romford alone.

The Home Office website also reveals that the second highest crime rate in the borough was in Harold Hill with 376 offences reported followed by Harold Wood with 267 incidents.

Residents can also compare how crime in their street compares to those in neighbouring boroughs.

In nearby Ilford there were a whopping 1,117 incidents reported to the police in December.

The website has been welcomed by Chairman of the Crime and Disorder Committee, Cllr Ted Eden, who argued that it would help residents to feel a lot safer.

He said: “I have heard a lot about the website and I think it’s good if it makes people more aware of what is happening in their area.

“Havering is not a bad place to live and in comparison with other areas the level of crime is relatively low so it’s good people are actually able to see this.”

The part of the borough with the fewest number of crimes reported in December is Upminster with just 111 incidents.

The new site also breaks down the figures into violent attacks, burglary, robbery, car crime and anti social behaviour on or near individual streets.

In Romford it shows that the most reported crime in December was anti social behaviour with 237 incidents.

The site was launched on Monday, January 31 with Home Secretary Theresa May commenting that it would help people find out what was really going on within their area.

But on Tuesday the website came up against its first glitch when the site crashed because of the millions logging on every hour.

It also came up against critcism with some people arguing that it could be targeted by criminals and could create a sense of fear among residents.

Cllr Ted Eden said: “I don’t think residents have anything to worry about.

“If anything I would be more scared if something happened and they were not aware of it – but now the residents know what’s happening on their own street.”

If you haven’t already logged on you can search your street at www.police.uk and let us know if there is anything interesting.