Hundreds of calls were passed on to police

Most of those who contacted the charity did not take the reward on offer for their assistance.

The service received almost 12,000 calls - and nearly two-thirds were passed to police forces for action.

More than 800 crimes were detected as a result, leading to more than 500 arrests for crimes including attempted murder, robbery and assault.

The service's national co-ordinator, Detective Inspector David Donaldson, thanked everyone who had made a call.

Confidential

He said: "I am delighted about the record number of calls this year - it shows that members of the public have real confidence in Crimestoppers.

"As well as hundreds of detections and arrests, dozens of calls have produced intelligence which could prove vital in the future."

The number of calls to the confidential telephone line rose by 23% on the previous year.

The majority of people who call the line aren't concerned with the financial reward Police spokesman

Some 7,800 of those calls were passed to Scottish police forces for action, leading to the detection of 836 crimes.

Calls to the freephone number also helped with the recovery of stolen property worth �590,000 and the seizure of drugs valued at �244,000.

Two firearms were also seized as a result of phone calls.

Almost �2,000 was paid out last year in rewards to callers.

However, a spokesman for Strathclyde Police said: "The majority of people who call the line aren't concerned with the financial reward - they are happy in the knowledge that a criminal is going to be arrested."