New Forest police have been hailed as among the best in the country in a glowing report by independent inspectors.

Her Majesty's Inspectorate of Constabulary compared the New Forest Basic Command Unit (BCU) with 14 similar units across England.

Inspectors found that the Forest had the highest detection rates for robbery, vehicle crime and violent crime in 2003-04.

It also had the second-highest detection rate for all recorded crime during the same period.

The inspectors' report says: "Senior leadership has improved performance across the board through commitment and drive, developing an assertive and open but no-nonsense leadership style."

BCU commander Supt Barry Talbot said: "This report reflects the hard work and commitment of our team, police officers and police staff alike.

"For the past three years our focus has been to improve our service delivery to reinforce our presence on the streets and drive forward our collective performance by bringing offenders to justice."

In a rare note of criticism, the report highlights the need for better internal communications, and says that working practices should be reviewed and steps taken to ensure that the BCU crime unit is less dependent on staff working overtime. Supt Talbot said that the team had already responded to the recommendations.

Hampshire's Assistant Chief Constable (territorial operations) Simon Cole said: "New Forest BCU has continued to be one of the best performing in the force. The inspection demonstrates the level of performance to be very high."

The report paints a mixed picture of crime in the Forest. It says domestic burglary fell by six per cent in 2002-03 and a further 25 per cent in 2003-04, but violent crime rose by 34.6 per cent in 2002-03 and another 49.9 per cent in 2003-04.

Robberies increased by 48.4 per cent in 2002-3, but fell by 21.7 per cent in the following 12 months.