Northerners more likely to become victims of violent crime than Southerners, says report

Breakdown of violence-related hospital admissions suggests Northerners may use violence to establish a "strong masculine identity"

New police officers could have to pay for their own training
New police officers could have to pay for their own training Credit: Photo: Getty Images

Britain has a north-south divide in violent crime, according to new research.

People in the north west, north east, Yorkshire and Humberside are more than twice as likely to go to A&E with a violence-related injury than people in the south east or eastern counties, academics have concluded.

Researchers said the higher levels of violence in the north could be due to “use of violence as a means to establish a strong masculine identity” or simply heavier drinking.

Academics at Cardiff University’s Violence Research Group said that overall levels of violence-related injuries seen at hospitals had decreased over five years but they drew up a regional breakdown for the first time.

“Violence rates in northern regions are higher than in the rest of England and Wales."
Prof Jonathan Shepherd

“Analysis by region revealed substantial variation between northern and southern regions, with higher injury rates identified in the north west and north east,” the report said.

“Lower rates of injury were identified in the eastern and south east.”

Professor Jonathan Shepherd, director of the centre and a co-author of the report, said: “Violence rates in northern regions are higher than in the rest of England and Wales.

Crime figures for the year to September 2015 have been released by the Office for National Statistics
The months of May and July were when serious violence was most common, the report found

“There could be a number of reasons for this, including the use of violence as a means to establish a strong masculine identity, higher levels of alcohol consumption among young adults compared with other age groups, and north-south inequalities in health and prosperity.”

In the north west all age groups had a violence-related injury rate of 6.8 per 1,000 population, while in the north east the figure was 6.6 and Yorkshire and Humberside it was 5.5.

In the eastern counties the rate was 2.5 per 1,000 and the south east it was 3.1.

“Our study is very encouraging in demonstrating a consistent and substantial decline in violence in England and Wales, including among children."
Prof Jonathan Shepherd

Between January 2010 and December 2014 the study found a 13.8 per cent average annual reduction in violence.

The findings, published in the Journal of Epidemiology and Community Health, found all but two of the 10 regions studied showed a significant decrease in hospital treatment following violence.

Only the south west experienced a slight increase, while the east showed just a slight fall.

The months of May and July were when serious violence was most common, whereas February was the quietest month.

The data was gathered from a scientific sample of 151 emergency departments, minor injury units and walk-in centres in England and Wales.

Professor Shepherd said: “Our study is very encouraging in demonstrating a consistent and substantial decline in violence in England and Wales, including among children.

“There is increasing evidence to suggest that this decline can be attributed in part to public health interventions and improved information-sharing between health services, police and local government.”

Alcohol consumption trends may have influenced the national decline in violence-related injury, the professor added.

Between 2005 and 2014 hospital admissions for alcohol-related violence in England declined by 27 per cent while alcohol consumption declined by 17 per cent over the same period.