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Early intervention is essential to addressing the problem of youth crime, a leading police officer told delegates at a conference in London, writes Clare Jerrom.

Deputy assistant commissioner of territorial policing Tim Godwin said the main problem of tackling youth crime on London's streets was finding alternatives to crime, looking at the social provision for young people and realising that "one size does not fit all".

Godwin told the Metropolitan Police Authority conference that last year there was a 29 per cent increase in street crime on the previous year, and so far this year there has been a 42 per cent rise.

Under operation 'safer streets' more than 2,000 street robbers a week are being arrested he added, which he cited as one of the problems contributing to the record total in the prison population.

Youths aged 14 to 17-years-old who used to start a life in crime by shoplifting, where now being arrested for the first time as a result of street crime, Godwin said.

Agencies working with young offenders should pool their resources. "We want more joined up action not just joined up thinking" he concluded.