“Opportunistic” criminals targeting two New Forest towns have led to a spike in shoplifting.
Shoplifting across the district has increased by 263 incidents from the previous year, councillors were told.
Brian Byrne, service manager at New Forest District Council, said Totton and Ringwood were the main targets for criminals between 2024 and 2025.
Speaking at the housing and communities overview and scrutiny panel on Wednesday, he said: “We have seen increases in areas such as Totton and Ringwood.
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“They are repeat offenders. Both of those areas border Dorset and Southampton, so it’s not always offender-based within the district – it is opportunistic coming into the area to commit these crimes.”
He added that burglaries at business and commercial premises in the New Forest have increased by five per cent within the last 12 months, to a total of 226 recorded incidents.
The number recorded in the previous year was 216.
The meeting heard Hampshire police have been using additional powers to tackle persistent offenders.
The strategic assessment report for 2025 reads: “Community Behaviour Orders (CBO) have been issued to individuals with a history of shoplifting, imposing restrictions such as banning entry to specific retail premises or prohibiting certain behaviours within designated areas.”
Other areas of concern were also brought before members.
This included sexual offences and trafficking of drugs, which have increased by eight per cent and 19 per cent respectively in the last year.
However, overall crime has dropped by three per cent.
Despite concerns, Mr Byrne said there is a “very high satisfaction rate” from the public when it comes to feeling safe in their communities.
Of those surveyed, 99.4 per cent said they were either satisfied or very satisfied living and visiting the New Forest, while 98.9 per cent said they felt safe or fairly safe within the area during the day.
“This is significantly higher than comparative neighbours”, he added.
This finding was a result of more than 400 public satisfaction surveys carried out across the New Forest last year.
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