Canterbury has a crime rate of 101.12 per 1,000 residents — around the national average for England and Wales, ranked #239 of 331 local authorities nationally. Crime levels vary significantly across Canterbury'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 Canterbury?

As of April 2026, Canterbury has an annual crime rate of 101.12 per 1,000 residents, based on 1,453 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 Canterbury rank nationally for crime?

Canterbury ranks #239 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 Canterbury?

The most common crime type in Canterbury is Violence & Sexual Offences, accounting for 504 incidents in April 2026 — 34.7% 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 Canterbury local authority area.

April 2026 Source: Kent Police Police

Crime in Canterbury: Crime Rate & Statistics 2026

Canterbury recorded 1,453 crimes in April 2026 — a crime rate of 9.06 per 1,000 residents. This places Canterbury at #239 of 331 local authorities in England and Wales. Violence & Sexual Offences accounts for the largest share of crime at 34.7% of all offences recorded. Crime is up 4.7% compared to the same period last year.

warning Crime is significantly above the UK average for this area.

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Key Statistics

monitoring101.12 crimes per 1,000 residents annually
assignment1,453 crimes recorded in April 2026
leaderboardRanked #239 of 331 UK local authorities by crime rate
trending_upCrime up 4.7% year-on-year

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

Total Crimes

1,453

trending_down -2.8% vs last month

Annual Crime Rate

101.12per 1k

High Risk

National Safety

#239of 331

Top 23% Riskiest UK

Kent

#10rank

Ranked by annual rate

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 Supermarket Map	Shoplifting: 69	69
On or near St Dunstan'S Street Map	Shoplifting: 42 Public order: 4 Robbery: 1	42
On or near Supermarket Map	Anti-social behaviour: 11 Other theft: 3	11
On or near Petrol Station Map	Shoplifting: 13	13
On or near Parking Area Map	Anti-social behaviour: 13	13
On or near Shopping Area Map	Shoplifting: 13	13
On or near Reeves Way Map	Shoplifting: 11 Robbery: 1	11
On or near Shopping Area Map	Anti-social behaviour: 11	11
On or near Shopping Area Map	Violence and sexual offences: 8 Other theft: 3	8
On or near Parking Area Map	Violence and sexual offences: 9	9

Crime Breakdown

April 2026

1,453 Total

Violence & Sexual Offences

504

34.7%

Anti-social Behaviour

298

20.5%

Shoplifting

204

14.0%

Criminal Damage & Arson

117

8.1%

Other Theft

6.1%

Public Order

3.6%

Burglary

2.6%

Vehicle Crime

2.5%

Drug Offences

2.3%

Other Crime

2.0%

Bicycle Theft

1.7%

Robbery

0.9%

Weapons Possession

0.5%

Theft from Person

0.5%

Crime Analysis: Canterbury

Canterbury recorded 1,453 crimes in April 2026, equivalent to a rate of 101.12 per 1,000 residents — one of the higher-crime areas in England and Wales, placing it in the top quarter nationally (#239 of 331 local authorities).

Violence & Sexual Offences makes up the largest share of crime in Canterbury at 34.7%. Anti-social Behaviour (20.5%) and Shoplifting (14.0%) are the next most common categories.

Compared to the same period last year, crime in Canterbury has risen slightly — by 4.7%. The 12-month trend chart above shows where this change is concentrated across individual offence categories.

All figures are published monthly by Kent 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

April 2026

1,479

Total Stops

17.8%

Arrest Rate

279

Neighbourhoods

Reason for Stop

Controlled drugs

749

Stolen goods

227

Article for use in theft

190

Offensive weapons

189

Articles for use in criminal damage

Firearms

Evidence of wildlife offences

Goods on which duty has not been paid etc.

Outcome

A no further action disposal869

Community resolution335

Arrest264

Summons / charged by post6

Caution (simple or conditional)4

Penalty Notice for Disorder1

Gender

Male1,190

Female264

Other25

Officer-Defined Ethnicity

Self-defined where available

75.2%

White

8.5%

Black

6.2%

Asian

5.1%

Other

5.0%

Mixed

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

Expert Safety Insights

Ward Safety Rankings

21 wards

Highest Crime

#	Ward	Crimes	Rate
1	Westgate	269	219.6
2	Northgate	159	203.8
3	Heron	211	136.5
4	Wincheap	124	117.8
5	Gorrell	103	111.2

Safest Wards

	Ward	Crimes	Rate
shield	Blean Forest	28	1.8
shield	Beltinge	14	1.4
shield	Swalecliffe	14	1.7
shield	Reculver	13	1.9
shield	Tankerton	8	1.7

Growth Analysis

Month-on-Monthtrending_down -2.8%

Year-on-Yeartrending_up +4.7%

12m Rolling Trendtrending_down -0.7%

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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