Leicestershire Police is encouraging Rutlanders to report non-emergency crime online.

Currently the vast majority of non-emergency crime reports come into the force via the 101 telephone line.

But Leicestershire Police is asking people to use the Single Online Home platform - part of a national project to standardise police websites across the country.

It allows users to interact directly with forces, enabling residents and businesses to report crime in a convenient and accessible way.

You can also:

- Report details of road traffic collisions

- Report fraud

- Report a lost or stolen vehicle

- Log anti-social behaviour details

- Report details of missing people

- Report lost or found property

- Provide feedback to the force including thanks or dissatisfaction

Users simply go to the force website and click on report and choose the relevant section.

There's a series of short questions to establish some basic details of what has happened, when and where, if there is any potential evidence and whether anything was stolen or damaged.

The information goes straight to the force's Crime Bureau, which assesses the information, decides whether more details are needed, allocates an officer or files it for information.

Users receive a reference number and will be contacted within 24 hours, either by email or text, detailing the next steps.

Leicestershire Police Assistant Chief Constable Julia Debenham said: "It is vital that the public have confidence in the police and are able to report any non-emergency incidents in as convenient and accessible way as possible.

"Single Online Home allows people to report crimes or incidents that don't require an immediate police response in their own time and at their own pace.

"An increasing amount of people prefer to do their business online and expect the police to be able to offer the same type of interaction they get with other service providers.

"It offers people exactly the same provision as calling 101 and can take less time. The average 101 call to report a crime or incident takes eight-and-a-half minutes.

"Reporting crime online not only gives the public greater choice in how they want to interact with us, it also frees up more of our resources.

"So the message is always call 999 in an emergency but if it's not then report your crime online via our website."