Bedford has a crime rate of 88.08 per 1,000 residents — around the national average for England and Wales, ranked #198 of 331 local authorities nationally. Crime levels vary significantly across Bedford's wards; some neighbourhoods are considerably safer than the city average. See the ward breakdown and hotspot map on this page for a detailed local picture.

What is the crime rate in Bedford?

As of April 2026, Bedford has an annual crime rate of 88.08 per 1,000 residents, based on 1,564 recorded offences in the latest reporting period. This figure is sourced from Police.uk open data and normalised using ONS Census 2021 population estimates to allow accurate comparisons between areas.

How does Bedford rank nationally for crime?

Bedford ranks #198 out of 331 local authorities in England and Wales by annual crime rate per 1,000 residents. A rank of #1 indicates the highest crime rate nationally. Rankings are recalculated each month as new Police.uk data becomes available, covering all recorded crimes across the area.

What is the most common crime in Bedford?

The most common crime type in Bedford is Violence & Sexual Offences, accounting for 544 incidents in April 2026 — 34.8% of all recorded crime in the area. Data is sourced from Police.uk and covers all crimes recorded by the responsible police force across the Bedford local authority area.

April 2026 Source: Bedfordshire Police Police

Crime in Bedford: Crime Rate & Statistics 2026

Bedford recorded 1,564 crimes in April 2026 — a crime rate of 8.44 per 1,000 residents. This places Bedford at #198 of 331 local authorities in England and Wales. Violence & Sexual Offences accounts for the largest share of crime at 34.8% of all offences recorded. Crime is up 3.9% compared to the same period last year.

info Crime is above average compared to other UK areas.

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Key Statistics

monitoring88.08 crimes per 1,000 residents annually
assignment1,564 crimes recorded in April 2026
leaderboardRanked #198 of 331 UK local authorities by crime rate
trending_upCrime up 3.9% year-on-year

Data Sources:Police.ukONS Census 2021HM Land Registry Period: April 2026 • Updated monthly

Total Crimes

1,564

Annual Crime Rate

88.08per 1k

Moderate

National Safety

#198of 331

Ranked by annual rate

National Population

185,224

Estimated population

12-Month Crime Trend

Monthly Totals

Interactive Crime Map

District View

Live Points

Crime Incident

Area Boundary

Incident Distribution

Top Locations

Location Reference	Crime Breakdown	Primary Count
On or near Petrol Station Map	Shoplifting: 33	33
On or near Kingsbrook Road Map	Shoplifting: 26 Robbery: 1	26
On or near Supermarket Map	Shoplifting: 23 Robbery: 2	23
On or near Shopping Area Map	Violence and sexual offences: 17 Drugs: 2 Other theft: 2	17
On or near Shopping Area Map	Shoplifting: 23	23
On or near Parking Area Map	Anti-social behaviour: 16	16
On or near Supermarket Map	Anti-social behaviour: 10 Public order: 5 Other crime: 1	10
On or near Parking Area Map	Violence and sexual offences: 15	15
On or near Fenlake Road Map	Shoplifting: 15	15
On or near Adelaide Square Map	Violence and sexual offences: 10 Other crime: 4	10

Crime Breakdown

April 2026

1,564 Total

Violence & Sexual Offences

544

34.8%

Anti-social Behaviour

285

18.2%

Shoplifting

186

11.9%

Public Order

108

6.9%

Criminal Damage & Arson

6.1%

Other Theft

5.3%

Vehicle Crime

4.2%

Drug Offences

2.9%

Burglary

2.7%

Other Crime

2.5%

Robbery

1.4%

Bicycle Theft

1.2%

Weapons Possession

1.2%

Theft from Person

0.6%

Crime Analysis: Bedford

Bedford recorded 1,564 crimes in April 2026, equivalent to a rate of 88.08 per 1,000 residents — above the national average for England and Wales, ranked #198 of 331.

Violence & Sexual Offences makes up the largest share of crime in Bedford at 34.8%. Anti-social Behaviour (18.2%) and Shoplifting (11.9%) are the next most common categories.

Compared to the same period last year, crime in Bedford has risen slightly — by 3.9%. The 12-month trend chart above shows where this change is concentrated across individual offence categories.

All figures are published monthly by Bedfordshire Police through the Police.uk open data platform and cross-referenced with ONS 2021 Census population estimates to produce the per-resident rates above. Data typically appears 1–2 months after the end of the recording period.

Stop & Search

March 2026

381

Total Stops

13.4%

Arrest Rate

Neighbourhoods

Reason for Stop

Controlled drugs

253

Offensive weapons

Article for use in theft

Stolen goods

Firearms

Outcome

A no further action disposal275

Arrest51

Community resolution39

Summons / charged by post14

Khat or Cannabis warning2

Gender

Male210

Female25

Officer-Defined Ethnicity

Self-defined where available

63.0%

White

18.5%

Asian

17.9%

Black

0.6%

Other

Stop & search data published by Bedfordshire Police under the Open Government Licence v3.0. Source: police.uk.

Expert Safety Insights

Ward Safety Rankings

27 wards

Highest Crime

#	Ward	Crimes	Rate
1	Castle	250	176.5
2	Kingsbrook	203	135.4
3	Harpur	103	128.8
4	Kempston West	81	118.4
5	Cauldwell	136	115.8

Safest Wards

	Ward	Crimes	Rate
shield	Riseley	2	0.6
shield	Oakley	7	1.8
shield	Wootton	34	4.5
shield	Kempston North	12	3.2
shield	Kempston Rural	34	3.5

Growth Analysis

Month-on-Monthtrending_flat 0.0%

Year-on-Yeartrending_up +3.9%

12m Rolling Trendtrending_down -0.1%

Data Transparency

Crime rates are calculated per 1,000 residents using ONS Census 2021 population data. Rankings cover all 331 local authorities in England & Wales.

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