The biggest decreases were in miscellaneous offences, down 53.8 per cent; fraud and deception, down 38.1 per cent; abduction and harassment, down 30 per cent; and public order, down 26.1 per cent.
Homicide and related offences remained the same as last year. Small increases were recorded in dangerous and negligent acts endangering people, up 22.2 per cent; unlawful entry with intent/burglary break and entering, up 0.3 per cent; and theft, up 0.9 per cent.
Police were pleased with the overall result, Ms Schwalger said. It was 4 per cent above the area's all-time low in 2004/05 and reflected staff resolve and the efforts of their partners, community patrols and the public, who supported the police: "It's everyone doing their bit, it's been a collective result."
The percentage decrease in crime in Wanganui was significant - less crime meant fewer victims and a safer community, she said. The few categories that saw increases were marginal when it came to the figures; two categories went up by two offences, and the third by 14.
Ms Schwalger said the increases could be the difference between whether people dealt with an offence themselves or called the police. Some people did not report. It could be that a shop had a new policy on reporting.
"It's hard to put a finger on," she said.
The homicide statistics included fatal car accidents which were someone else's fault. While not a great result, they had stayed the same and had not gone up.
The offences which were down were mainly violence-related incidents, and violence was always a hot topic for the public, she said.
The drop in public-order offences was especially good because fewer of those types of offences meant people felt safer and that was something the police and the community had been working on.
"[Wanganui] had a poor reputation traditionally and I think that people have been actively working together to give it a positive feel," Ms Schwalger said.
The reduction in abduction and harassment-type offences went hand in hand with public order in making people feel safer.
The outcome was positive for Wanganui, and showed police staff had been working to reduce crime and policing to the best of their ability, Ms Schwalger said.
The expectation now was that offences would continue to decline, and police would not be taking their foot off the pedal.
"We still have to be vigilant, we have to continue to do that. We're working very hard to do ourselves out of a job," Ms Schwalger said.