A Kent district has been ranked the third most violent in the country - but locals are divided on how safe its streets are.

Alarming figures put Thanet behind only Blackpool and Middlesbrough on an unenviable list of crime hotspots across England and Wales.

Some argue alcohol, drugs and rundown high streets are partly to blame for the Isle’s appearance so high up a table ordered by violent offences per population.

But others say they feel perfectly safe despite several high-profile stabbings this year alone.

Among those downplaying the statistics is a man who has experienced violence first-hand on the district’s streets,

Isaac Edward, 20, from Ramsgate, said: “I have seen four stabbings in Thanet and been stabbed myself, but I don’t feel like it’s dangerous here - maybe I’m just used to it.”

Mr Edward says he was stabbed in Ramsgate three years ago with such force the blade snapped and narrowly missed his heart.

He says his attacker - who was never caught - was a stranger who raged suddenly before lashing out with the weapon and snatching his phone.

“It happened right outside the police station and it was caught on CCTV,” he added.

Thanet ranks by far the worst in Kent in terms of reports of violence against a person, according to the Office for National Statistics.

There were 622 such instances per 10,000 people in the year from March 2022.

Offences range from lower-level offending such as battery, all the way up to the most serious - murder.

Zoe Ashley, who lives in Ramsgate, told KentOnline: “The statistics don’t surprise me at all.

“Thanet is not the kind of place you want to go walking through the streets after dark - there is always something happening and it’s gotten worse in recent years.

“But I think that a lot of the violence is group-specific violence so if you don’t get involved with those groups then you’re OK.”

Some people on the streets of Ramsgate told KentOnline they believe alcohol and drugs are the root cause of trouble in the area.

Others believe a person’s disposition towards violence is to blame.

Retired surgeon Robert Hedde, 82, is all too familiar with dealing with the aftermath of serious violent crimes.

Mr Hedde, a grandfather who lives in Canterbury but worked in Margate, said: “You need to look at the population.

“There is a large working-class population and there is a lot of poverty - I think the working-class population has more of a propensity to fight.

“I have never experienced violent crime here myself, but when I was working as a surgeon in Margate I saw many stabbing victims, so I have seen the effects of violent crime.”

Thanet’s violent crime rate is 45% higher than the average for Kent districts.

Medway, Swale and Dover make up the top four, according to ONS figures, with Sevenoaks, Tonbridge and Malling ranked the safest parts.

Playing down the findings, Ramsgate resident Alan Thatcher, 33, said: “I feel safe here. I think London is much worse than Thanet and that the stats must be wrong.”

Mary Fazzalaro, who recently moved to Ramsgate from Canterbury, says while she was aware of Thanet’s reputation for crime she was not deterred when buying a house.

The accounts manager believes the area’s problems with violence stem from underinvestment in the economy.

“The situation is a bit worrying and I don’t know what can be done to change it apart from getting more investment in the area,” the 33-year-old said.

“There are a lot of shops that have had to shut down here and I think that has an effect.

“If the high street does not look good then it can attract antisocial behaviour.

“Having said that, I do generally feel safe here.

“ I think the area is up-and-coming, people are coming down from London to buy houses here so give it a few years and it will get better.”

Ian Swallow, Thanet’s chief inspector and district commander, pointed to tourism as part of the reason for the area’s relatively high levels of violence.

“There are many factors that can influence certain crime types in a particular area, including the number of visitors to town or city centre locations,” he said.

“We are fortunate that Thanet has a wide variety of things to do that attract visitors from outside the district, but comparing data per capita with areas that enjoy far less visitors doesn’t always reflect the true profile of a district.”

Kent Police data shows improvement may already be underway.

Recent figures show violent crime rates in the district between March 2022 and 2023 dropped compared to the previous year.

MP for North Thanet Sir Roger Gale said: “I am not remotely sanguine about violent crime, which all too frequently is domestic.

“But I am gratified to learn from the district commander for Margate, with whom I am in regular contact, that within the reporting period referred to there has been a 10% reduction.”