The Bureau of Crime Statistics and Research (BOCSAR) has published its crime figures for 2014, which paint a fairly positive picture for much of the state.

Crime rates largely held steady across the Tenterfield local government area – sans break ins, where the figures drastically climbed 88.6 percent.

The next biggest jumps were in Palerang LGA, east of Canberra, with 82 percent and Lithgow LGA which had a 62 percent rise.

BOCSAR Director Dr Don Weatherburn noted the increase.

"The only thing that went up (in Tenterfield) was break and enter to dwellings," Dr Weatherburn said.

"It’s problem is theft, everything else is good,” he said.

Break and enters to non-dwellings were at 52 recorded incidents and break and enter to dwellings were up to 66.

That’s up from 31 and 35 from the previous year.

New England Acting Crime Manager Stuart Grey said it was better to look at the incident count rather than percentages.

“It has certainly been a fairly large rise – from our point of view though 35 to 66 only equates to one extra incident a week.

“In a perfect world we’d expect zero,” Crime Manager Grey said.

He said the weeks between September and November 2014 had been the worst.

He also noted that local police were able to make three arrests in December relating to some of the crimes.

“The numbers are on the way down now,” he said.

Mr Grey said that this wasn’t a situation unique to Tenterfield but stressed that the community needed to be more alert to the threat.

He said the ‘old days’ of leaving things unlocked were over.

“The days of leaving the car and house unlocked are gone – if someone is determined to break in, they will.

“If you make it hard for them they’ll move on to the next place – crooks don’t like to hang around.

“We don’t want to make our houses fortresses with bars on windows but if you’re out mowing lock your doors.

“Fingers crossed it will be a different story next year,” Crime Manager Stuart Grey said.