Crime recorded by the police rose by six per cent in the year to September, including a 27 per cent jump in violence against the person, official figures have revealed.
It amounted to an extra 185,666 violent offences, bringing the annual total to more than 885,000 in England and Wales.
The Office for Nationals Statistics said: "There were also increases in some of the more serious types of police recorded violence, including a nine per cent rise in offences involving knives or sharp instruments and a four per cent increase in offences involving firearms.
"Such offences are less likely to be prone to changes in recording practices though there is some anecdotal evidence to suggest that a tightening of recording procedures may also be contributing to some of the increase in some forces."
Sexual offences recorded by the police continued to show a rise which has been widely attributed to increased confidence in the criminal justice system by victims - in the latest period there was a 36 per cent year-on-year increase, or an additional 26,606 offences.
The numbers of rapes, at 33,431, and other sexual offences, at 66,178, were at the highest level since the current recording methods were introduced in 2003.
There were also 71 more homicides in the year, with a total of 574, compared with the previous 12 months.
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