Anger over unfair crime headlines

Angry councillors in Teignmouth have hit out after a number of national news websites claimed the resort’s beach had the highest seaside crime rate in the whole of the UK.

Lurid headlines, in one case accompanied by a picture of a completely unconnected Torbay beach, prompted a flood of comments on social media.

But now Teignmouth Town Council and local police have hit back.

Mayor Cllr Cate Williams said: “We are bitterly disappointed that several national media outlets have misrepresented the crime statistics relating to Teignmouth which, in fact, remains a safe town with very little trouble.

“How such inaccuracies are allowed to be published is utterly baffling and downright annoying. The reputational damage is of serious concern, not just to us as a town council that fights every inch of the way to improve residents’ lives, but also to the businesses that rely on visitors.

‘Who could be blamed for cancelling a holiday or deciding to head elsewhere for their next trip if their only source of so-called information is the tabloids that have published this incorrect interpretation of the data?”

The articles said Teignmouth’s was one of the most dangerous beaches in the UK, but the data was only collected for the 14m by 14m area known as Spratt Sand, which is on the southernmost tip of the Point beach.

There were 46 crimes in that specific area in the course of a year, including assaults, thefts and drug-related crime. These had been multiplied up to create a figure of 261 per square kilometre, placing Teignmouth at the top of the table.

But the council and police say multiplying the figures created a picture that was ‘misleading and inaccurate’.

Police Sector Inspector Sean Roper said: “For context, 74 other coastal locations in the UK have a higher crime rate than Teignmouth. The issue appears to be crimes reported in the wider area being logged to a single spot on our systems.