VIOLENT crime is such a problem in York it is now a public health concern, according to NHS chiefs.

Shocking statistics have emerged in the first Annual Public Health Report from the newly formed North Yorkshire and York Primary Care Trust (PCT), showing that the city's levels of violent crime are significantly higher than the national average - and a "serious problem".

Citing Home Office sources, the report says there were about 22 violent offences per 1,000 people in the City of York Council area in 2004/05, compared with only 19.5 per 1,000 people across England.

And York even fares worse than the average for the Yorkshire and Humber region, which experienced about 21 violent offences per 1,000 people. In Ryedale and Hambleton, there were less than ten such offences.

Dr David Fair, who has been working as a GP at Jorvik Medical Practice for 15 years, and as a police surgeon for ten, said he had seen evidence of increasing violence over the past decade during the course of both jobs.

He said: "It seems to be young people getting tanked up over the weekend, losing their tempers and going out and looking for a fight.

"I'm often dealing with people who've been arrested but have been injured, either in the course of their crime or in the course of being arrested. You sometimes get people who've been arrested and ejected from casualty - they're so drunk and aggressive and when they get taken to casualty, casualty can't deal with them so they get put into police cells.

"We also see more evidence of domestic violence in the surgery. We've seen an increase in both sexes. I think the underlying problem is the increasing availability of alcohol and the disintegration of the family unit and both of those things make people more likely to be aggressive and less sociable."

PCT public health bosses also said York stood out among other areas deemed "Prospering Smaller Towns," with a significantly higher rate than England and the group average.

They said City of York Community Safety Plan 2005/08 had reported violent crime more than doubled during the period 2001-2004.

An area of common concern was the relationship between violence and alcohol, with claims that York suffered a significantly worse problem of binge drinking than the English average in the period 2000-2002.

But Selby's levels of violent offences were significantly below the England average, with 16 per 1,000 people.

Worryingly, report authors pointed to recorded incidents of domestic violence as only "the tip of the iceberg".

They said a special domestic violence co-ordinator had been appointed to cover the York and Selby area to develop ways of tackling the problem. But North Yorkshire Police today dismissed the report's findings, saying the statistics were out of date and could be misleading to members of the public.

Spokesman Tony Lidgate said: "One of the reasons people want to live in North Yorkshire, including York, is that violence is so rare - it's a damn nice place to live."

He said that at one time, for a crime to be listed as violent, there had to be a consequence, such as a black eye. But now, such a crime was recorded if, for example, people shouted abuse in the street.

He said crimes involving, for example, guns or knives, were a real rarity.

He said it was true that the violent crime that did occur was all too often linked to alcohol, and York had pioneering measures in place to ensure licensees behaved responsibly in serving drinks. But he said it was ultimately down to society and to individuals as to whether too much alcohol was being consumed.

The PCT said the purpose of its Improving Health Together report was to provide an independent and objective statement about the health of the local population, identifying key issues, reporting progress towards health targets, and informing local health planning.

Director of public health Rachel Johns said: "This report sets out important information about the health and well-being of the population of the newly formed North Yorkshire & York PCT. It highlights many areas where health is good but also demonstrates that more work is needed to improve outcomes in some communities."

The report says that in many areas of health, York fares better than the national average. There is better than average life expectancy, better teen pregnancy rates, less early deaths due to heart disease, stroke and cancer and fewer alcohol related hospital stays.


Quaint' city has a dark side'

THE report's picture of York as a violent city came as no surprise to Paul Williams, whose brother, Michael, died after being attacked in the street in Chapelfields last year.

"People have this quaint image of York as a quiet tourist town, but there's definitely a dark side to the place," said Paul, of Clifton. "Violent crime has definitely increased. It's definitely got worse. There was a time when you hardly heard about it but now it's in the paper all the time - and that's just the things that the police know about.

"There are other things happening in York that they don't know about."

Steven Stone was jailed last year for manslaughter after a court heard that Mr Williams fell back and struck his head on a pavement after being punched by Stone. He died in hospital several days later from the injuries he sustained.

Paul and other family members are currently campaigning for Stone, formerly of Chapelfields Road, to be banned from York when he is released from prison later this year.