Police Scotland have revealed that there has been a vast drop in serious assaults in West Kilbride as a result of increased coverage in the village.

Their local community policing plan was formed after much public consultation between April 2013 and January of this year. The four main areas of concern raised by residents were; drug dealing and use; assaults and violent crime; housebreakings and theft; and drunk or disorderly behaviour (including vandalism and graffiti.

In accordance with the public interest, these concerns were prioritised in the plan. From the 1st April 2013 to January 1st, the number of reports for the above four groups of crime dropped by 14%; from 306 to 262. However, the number of domestic abuse incidents stoof at 129, a rise of 21%.

Police Scotland believes that the 15% drop in reports concerning consumption of alcohol and antisocial behaviour comes as a direct result of their increased focus on the issue.

A police spokesperson said: “We have targeted and disrupted the sale of alcohol and cigarettes to young people by use of Covert Operations with North Ayrshire Trading Standards, and taken action against licensed premises that have committed offences.” “We have delivered a co-ordinated response to local community concerns within the West Kilbride and Dalry ward in relation to antisocial behaviour, violence and disorder. The number of serious assaults being committed within the community has decreased by 77.8% and there has also been a significant reduction in the number of common assaults.” In terms of the upcoming months, the force outlines a range of options to pursue, including sending plain clothes officers into disorder ‘hot-spots’, using stop and search powers “to detect and deter individuals suspected of or known to be carrying knives and weapons”, and continuing monitoring of road behaviour and off-license sales