A POLICE campaign has launched in an attempt to reduce the number of burglaries on Teesside after latest figures showed a big increase in the crime.

Cleveland Police statistics showed the number of domestic burglaries in the 12 month period leading to June this year was 2,452, up from 1,921 the previous year, a rise of 27 per cent.

A total of 43 per cent of all 162 burglaries recorded by the Force in the single month of June were due to people leaving doors and windows unlocked, and now Cleveland Police has launched a poster campaign urging people to make their homes safe.

The Force is being supported by Thirteen Group, the North-East's biggest landlord in the Cleveland area, and posters have been put up across the entire Teesside area in an effort to beat the burglars.

Volume Crime Detective Chief Inspector, Chris Downes, said: “An insecure property provides the ideal environment for an opportunist thief to strike. Leaving doors and windows unlocked is akin to leaving your belongings out on the street for thieves to steal – you wouldn’t do that, so why take the chance by leaving your home insecure?

“Burglary is a priority for us and we are doing everything that we possibly can to prevent these crimes from happening, but there are things that people can do to protect themselves from becoming a victim and it is important that people take those steps.

“This is an intrusive crime that can leave people feeling vulnerable in their own homes. One burglary is too many and preventing yourself from becoming a victim can be as simple as locking your doors and windows.”

Cleveland Police crime prevention advice to protect your home includes:

• Make your home look occupied with use of plug-in timers to illuminate your home during hours of darkness.

• Keep the rear of your premises secure and ensure that side rear gates are locked. Do not provide easy access to the rear of your property.

• Remove keys from locks and away from doors where they are out of sight.

• Use an alarm.

• Do not leave tools and ladders lying about and keep your shed and garage secure.

• Make sure your items are traceable by post-coding your property with your house number using a UV pen.

The statistics, published on Cleveland Police's website, shows the total number of all categories of theft rising by seven per cent for the year leaving up to June this year compared to June, 2014. The total number of thefts were 21,185 compared to 19,797 the previous year. There was some good news as the number of bicycle thefts were reduced by 13.4 per cent, down from 1,254 to 1,086.