People in the city are being warned to stay vigilant after 36 homes were burgled over a two week period.

St Albans Detective Inspector Alex Warwick has revealed there has been a “significant increase” in burglaries around the St Albans area – with 11 of them occurring on Friday February 9.

Ms Warwick added that police officers are now working longer hours in a bid to tackle the most targeted areas including Bricket Wood, Park Street and Harpenden.

She said: “Burglaries have significantly increased in St Albans and we are working hard to catch those responsible.

“Whilst we have high-visibility patrols, we also have a lot of police activity behind the scenes that residents will not be aware of.

“Because of the unusual increase, we have police officers working extra shifts across the St Albans district, including Bricket Wood and Park Street, which has been targeted in the last few weeks.”

Car keys, cash and jewellery was stolen from a burglary in Park Street Lane between 10.30am and 5.15pm on February 9 (Crime reference is F3/18/318).

Jewellery was stolen from an address in Birch Copse in Bricket Wood between 3.30pm and 9.45pm on February 10 (F3/18/336).

Damage was caused to a back door in Stanley Gardens between 1pm on Wednesday February 7 and 4pm on Monday February 12. (F3/18/358).

A second address in Stanley Gardens was targeted where thieves caused damage to a patio door between 3.30pm on February 10 and 6pm on February 11. (F3/18/354).

A shovel was stolen from a shed in Puddingstone Drive between 10pm and 11pm on Tuesday February 20.

Ms Warwick added: “We are pleased that residents have taken on board crime prevention advice. I would always encourage residents to invest in additional security measures including house alarms, CCTV and web-based security cameras and doorbells, as well as making their premises as unattractive as possible for burglars, who want to commit their crimes unseen.

“Don’t forget to securely lock PVCu doors and shut all windows when you go out or go to bed and give your home the ‘lived-in’ look. As jewellery has been targeted in some offences, I’d encourage residents to make sure they keep valuable or sentimental jewellery securely locked away and out of sight, especially when you go on holiday.”