A Bradford nightclub is among the most crime-plagued clubs in West Yorkshire, according to latest police figures.

There were 89 violent offences in and around Livingstones in the year up to March, with 60 people arrested after violent incidents in the club's vicinity.

Only Visage, in Huddersfield, experienced more violent crime, with 121 incidents during the year.

Livingstones also had the third-highest number of overall offences in West Yorkshire, with 157 incidents recorded and 75 arrests.

But today, police said the crime count at Livingstones was "exaggerated" because trouble at the nearby taxi rank was often wrongly attributed to the club.

City Centre Inspector Steve Baker said Living-stones was a well-run, busy nightspot where management and staff did everything possible to prevent crime.

He said: "Yes, there was more violent crime at Livingstones but it's because it's the busiest place.

"The problem in the West End is that people hang around outside Livingstones waiting for taxis, but those people could have come from any of the venues. The taxi rank just happens to be outside Livingstones so any trouble is attributed to that club."

Insp Baker said violent crime in that area of the city had reduced by 35 per cent in the last 12 months, partly because of Livingstones' pro-active approach to disorder.

He said there had not been a single incident of violent crime in Bradford's West End last weekend.

"People think there's fighting every single night, but that is not the case," he said. "We are trying to encourage people to come in to the city centre and enjoy themselves."

Police now cordon-off the main road in the West End between midnight and 4am to stop it being used by private vehicles. This allows taxis to get in and out of the area quicker to disperse the crowds from one of the city's potential "hotspots".

Officers patrol the area at weekends and meet the management at Livingstones every week.

A spokesman for West Yorkshire Police said: "What at first glance appear to be the worst' premises for disorder are in reality the ones which are operating well and with which West Yorkshire Police have established excellent working partnerships."

The spokesman said officers often used Livingstones as a landmark location for public order incidents nearby and that many of the crimes were unconnected tot he club.

Nobody from Livingstones was available for comment yesterday.

David Haigh, President of the Bradford Inner-city Licensees Association, said the size of venues could cause problems.

He said: "The more people you get, the more potential there is for trouble and when there are large groups involved trouble can escalate quickly.

"But when trouble happens outside you do tend to get tarred with it, which isn't always fair."

Mr Haigh said the West End of Bradford had its own Pubwatch scheme and staff at different bars were connected via a radio link to warn each other about troublemakers.

e-mail: will.kilner@bradford.newsquest.co.uk