POLICE have reassured the public Bicester "is still a safe place to live" despite some crimes more than doubling in places over the last 12 months.

Latest town centre figures put forward by Superintendent Kath Lowe showed incidents of rape increased 94 per cent and violence against a person increased by 50 per cent while both drugs and burglary offences have also risen.

Thames Valley Police has put the hike in stats largely down to changes to recording rules but residents remain concerned at the "shocking" figures.

Supt Lowe said: "Overall violence in Bicester Town has gone up in the past 12 months from 406 incidents to 612 and rurally from 53 to 106.

"But it is not going back to the Wild West out there, our experience is that it isn’t any more violent out there.

"It sounds quite frightening but there have been changes to the Home Office crime recording rules and we have also been giving our staff more training - so better questioning of people means we are actually identifying more crimes."

Thames Valley Police record figures for Bicester by splitting it into the town and the rural areas, which includes the surrounding villages.

In both cases the figures show violent crime - which includes anything from threats of violence to pushing and shoving - has gone up, by 50 per cent in the town and offences have doubled rurally, which is in line with many other authorities.

The crime with the biggest increase in Bicester Town was rape, with a rise from 17 offences to 33.

But rural figures bucking the county trend with figures dropping from 12 offences last year to 11.

Supt Lowe added: "I want to assure you that this area remains a very safe place to live just to put these figures into context. The numbers may seem to be going up but I would like to try and give some reassurance about that.

"Nationally we are seeing an increase in the reporting of rape offences. That continues and we are always aware of rape which is usually an under reported crime so it is not surprising to see that this number is increasing."

However, there was a rise in drug offences, which includes taking and dealing illegal substances, in Bicester Town from 73 to 81 that does not follow the pattern seen elsewhere in the county.

Recently in the town centre police have undertaken six drugs raids within six week but some residents are saying not enough is being done.

One local, Sallie Wright, said: "I live in a close and myself and a neighbour have kept diary sheets of drug dealing at the top of my road and we have not had a great deal of help from the police with it.

"I understand they can't be everywhere all the time and can only arrest somebody if they find something but I do think they could act more promptly with drug dealing.

"There also seem to be a lot more burglaries you hear about lately especially from cars, whoever is doing it seems to be working really hard at the moment.

"I know she said although the figures seem shocking Bicester is still a safe place to live which is reassuring but it just doesn't feel like it sometimes."

Many others have been airing their concerns at the rise in drug offences, including on the Bicester Chat Facebook page.

One resident Esther Wells described how her child had found a pot of needles close to the Boston Road roundabout adding "I am getting scared to let my kids out to play, who knows what they might find".

Another resident Rob Daniels added about issues of people smoking Cannabis near the play area in Southwold and said: "Everytime I take the dog out in Southwold there are these people, the same play area where kids were doing cubs club."

Bicester Town councillor David Anderson also voiced his worries about the issue of drug dealing and taking in the play area on Sunderland Drive and police agreed to follow up the concerns.

To tackle any increase in drug offence the force has said it is carrying out more targeted patrols to provide a more efficient use of resources based on community feedback.