Norwich City supporters are among the best behaved in the top two tiers of English football, according to new figures.

Carrow Road has remained largely trouble free, with Canaries fans believing they should be 'proud' of their conduct.

Home Office figures show just 12 Norwich fans were arrested throughout the 2010/11 Championship promotion season.

And nine of these received orders from the courts between November 2010 and November 2011 banning them from entering football grounds.

In total, there are 26 Norwich fans currently with banning orders - the fifth fewest among the 20 Premier League teams.

City season ticket holder Melissa Rudd, 22, of Hellesdon, Norwich, said: 'You can see from the wide range of people that follow Norwich that everyone is welcome at matches - from young kids to middle aged men and women, families and also older people.

'I think this mix helps to discourage any hooligan-like behaviour that perhaps develops at other clubs where the majority of fans are males in their 20s-30s and there is a 'lads club' culture where almost anything goes.

'I have to say I've never experienced this when I've been to watch Norwich away, even at trips like Colchester and Ipswich where fans got there early to drink in pubs around the ground and there was a big police presence.

'Of course there will always be one or two troublemakers but on the whole I think Norwich fans can be proud of their behaviour both home and away.'

PC Andy Pearson, a Lincolnshire-based football intelligence officer who works across the country, said he understood Norwich did have a group of fans considered to be a risk of causing trouble, but this was smaller than even some non-league clubs.

PC Pearson said: 'Norwich do have a risk group but I don't think they can pull anything near the numbers Lincoln City do and, apart from the big derby with Ipswich, I'm not aware of them causing problems.'

Norwich's aggregate attendance throughout the 2010/11 season for league games was 583,886, with an average of 25,386 people at each one.

The reasons why 12 Canary fans were arrested during 2010/11 included public order offences, going onto the pitch and alcohol offences. Only five of these arrests were at Carrow Road.

The total number of banning orders has increased from 20 in 2010, but arrests decreased from 13.

Manchester United had 276 supporters arrested in the 2010/11 season - the highest in the country. Chelsea fans have the most banning orders with 105, while Fulham have the least with four.

Fulham are one of only four teams in the Premier League to better Norwich's banning order total. Wigan, Queens Park Rangers and Bolton complete the list.

Norfolk Police says it works closely with Norwich City to police matches at Carrow Road, with planning taking place well in advance.

A force spokesman said: 'Liaison also takes place with other police forces and visiting clubs to ensure everyone's safety and as little disruption as possible to the general public and the city.

'Anyone behaving in a disorderly manner will be fairly but firmly dealt with.

'It is pleasing to see that relatively few arrests or banning orders have needed to be made relating to Norwich City supporters and a number of matches are actually police free.'

One high-profile incident involving Norwich fans included Mark and Daniel Warman. The pair confronted Canaries' coaching staff after running onto the pitch during City's 7-1 home defeat against Colchester United in August 2009.

They were issued with a caution by police but Norwich City banned them from attending matches.