A FRESH view at the impact of crime on everyday life has been offered by economists at the University of York who have created a new measure of public safety.

The new yardstick measures how safe households in an area are from being affected by six common types of crime, such as violence, sexual offences and robbery.

The York Index of Public Safety (YIPS) reveals that, in North Yorkshire, York ranks as the least safe area to live in, while Hambleton comes out top. But experts say it has been skewed by the fact that York has the highest concentration of residents and is the largest place in the county.

Roger Bowles, deputy director of the Centre For Criminal Justice, Economics and Psychology at the University of York, said the figures more clearly reflected the impact of crime on residents' quality of life. He said: "This is useful because it tells a slightly different story to official crime statistics. It is more victim focused and is aimed at assessing how safe we are. It reflects a household's point of view and is trying to look on the more positive side by highlighting how likely we are to be safe, rather than being victimised."

Hambleton tops the table as the safest district, Ryedale follows, closely followed by Richmond and Harrogate. At the other end Scarborough is marginally more safe than York.

In Humberside, the East Riding of Yorkshire proves to be the safest area, according to YIPS, with Hull by far the most dangerous, significantly more so than York.

Carole Patrick, of the Safer York Partnership, said a string of successful programmes led by the police, council and other agencies, helped create a safer community for all York residents. These included Operation Ratcatcher, a scheme to tip off York police about criminal activity, and the prolific offenders scheme.

Updated: 09:29 Saturday, July 19, 2003