A councillor says the rest of the UK can learn from Middlesbrough's success in fighting crime.

Councillor Barry Coppinger, Middlesbrough's cabinet member for public safety, and Cleveland Chief Constable Sean Price, are travelling to London today, with colleagues, in an attempt to win coveted Beacon status for the Middlesbrough Crime and Disorder partnership.

Their bid will tell Deputy Prime Minister John Pres-cott's office that Middlesbrough last year achieved a 16 per cent reduction in overall crime, including a 31 per cent drop in house burglaries and an 18 per cent reduction in vehicle crime.

Over the same period, the council issued 14 anti-social behaviour orders - with the backing of the courts - successfully sought six evictions and the signing of 170 acceptable behaviour contracts. Coun Coppinger, the partnership chairman, said: "Crime reduction partners agreeing priorities and sharing information at a strategic level - and backing this up with co-ordination and deployment of police and council resources at community level - has delivered results in Middlesbrough and can do the same elsewhere."

He added: "We believe such an approach can reduce crime across the country and we're going down to John Prescott's office to tell his department how it can be done."

The team going to London includes Coun Coppinger, his executive director John Richardson, Ed Chicken, the head of the community protection service, the chief constable and Wendy Shepherd from Barnardo's, chair of the prostitution task group.

They will make a presentation of their case to officials.

Awaiting the outcome of the visit with interest will be Middlesbrough Mayor Ray Mallon, who, as a senior detective, introduced American- style zero tolerance techniques to tackling crime.

Dubbed "Robocop" for his no nonsense approach to fighting crime, Mr Mallon recruited a security force of 70 street wardens, following his election as mayor on a landslide vote.

One of the first innovations he introduced at the town hall was a computerised mapping system which is used to pinpoint trouble spots, in order to deploy resources more effectively.

* More than 200 delegates from across the country attended a conference in Middlesbrough last week, to learn the secrets of the town's success in fighting crime.