Knife crime rises by ten per cent National police figures show the number of robberies involving knives rose from 13,971 in 2010 to 15,313 last year, despite the overall number of crimes recorded by police falling by four per cent to 4.1 million, figures showed today. Robberies in general, including the theft of smartphones, bags and cash, rose by four per cent, with approximately half taking place in London. The four per cent increase in robberies across England and Wales was driven by a 13 per cent rise in the Metropolitan Police area and a 10 per cent increase in the West Midlands. But Greater Manchester Police, another of the biggest forces in the country, showed a 14 per cent fall in the number of robberies. Chief Constable Jon Murphy, the lead for crime for the Association of Chief Police Officers (Acpo), said: "While falls in violence against the person overall fell, a continued cause for concern was the increase in pickpocketing, robbery, and robbery with knives. This has been driven by a rise in robberies of personal property and police forces will want to focus actions on tackling these offences and offering crime prevention advice. Separate figures from the British Crime Survey showed "no statistically significant change" in the estimated number of crimes compared with the previous 12 months.