Is Cheshire West and Chester safe?

Cheshire West and Chester has a crime rate of 68.11 per 1,000 residents — around the national average for England and Wales, ranked #111 of 331 local authorities nationally. Crime levels vary significantly across Cheshire West and Chester'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 Cheshire West and Chester?

As of April 2026, Cheshire West and Chester has an annual crime rate of 68.11 per 1,000 residents, based on 2,193 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 Cheshire West and Chester rank nationally for crime?

Cheshire West and Chester ranks #111 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 Cheshire West and Chester?

The most common crime type in Cheshire West and Chester is Violence & Sexual Offences, accounting for 908 incidents in April 2026 — 41.4% 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 Cheshire West and Chester local authority area.

April 2026 Source: Cheshire Constabulary Police

Crime in Cheshire West and Chester: Crime Rate & Statistics 2026

Cheshire West and Chester recorded 2,193 crimes in April 2026 — a crime rate of 6.13 per 1,000 residents. This places Cheshire West and Chester at #111 of 331 local authorities in England and Wales. Violence & Sexual Offences accounts for the largest share of crime at 41.4% of all offences recorded. Crime is down 2.3% compared to the same period last year.

check_circle Crime is below average compared to other UK areas.

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Key Statistics

monitoring68.11 crimes per 1,000 residents annually
assignment2,193 crimes recorded in April 2026
leaderboardRanked #111 of 331 UK local authorities by crime rate
trending_downCrime down 2.3% year-on-year

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

Total Crimes

2,193

trending_down -3.1% vs last month

Annual Crime Rate

68.11per 1k

Moderate

National Safety

#111of 331

Ranked by annual rate

National Population

357,149

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 Shopping Area Map	Shoplifting: 54 Criminal damage and arson: 5 Burglary: 2	54
On or near Nightclub Map	Violence and sexual offences: 24 Shoplifting: 12 Drugs: 3	24
On or near Parking Area Map	Shoplifting: 27	27
On or near Parking Area Map	Public order: 26	26
On or near Shopping Area Map	Anti-social behaviour: 25	25
On or near Hospital Map	Violence and sexual offences: 19 Criminal damage and arson: 4	19
On or near Parking Area Map	Anti-social behaviour: 20	20
On or near Shopping Area Map	Violence and sexual offences: 20	20
On or near Parking Area Map	Violence and sexual offences: 17	17
On or near Supermarket Map	Shoplifting: 16	16

Crime Breakdown

April 2026

2,193 Total

Violence & Sexual Offences

908

41.4%

Public Order

279

12.7%

Anti-social Behaviour

231

10.5%

Shoplifting

179

8.2%

Criminal Damage & Arson

136

6.2%

Other Theft

123

5.6%

Drug Offences

4.4%

Burglary

3.4%

Vehicle Crime

2.7%

Other Crime

2.4%

Weapons Possession

0.7%

Theft from Person

0.6%

Bicycle Theft

0.6%

Robbery

0.5%

Crime Analysis: Cheshire West and Chester

Cheshire West and Chester recorded 2,193 crimes in April 2026, equivalent to a rate of 68.11 per 1,000 residents — broadly average for England and Wales, ranked #111 of 331.

Violence & Sexual Offences accounts for more than a third of all recorded crime in Cheshire West and Chester (41.4%). Public Order (12.7%) and Anti-social Behaviour (10.5%) are the next most common categories.

Compared to the same period last year, crime in Cheshire West and Chester has fallen slightly — by 2.3%. The 12-month trend chart above shows where this change is concentrated across individual offence categories.

All figures are published monthly by Cheshire Constabulary 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

1,109

Total Stops

11.3%

Arrest Rate

122

Neighbourhoods

Reason for Stop

Controlled drugs

878

Offensive weapons

Article for use in theft

Stolen goods

Articles for use in criminal damage

Firearms

Fireworks

Outcome

A no further action disposal776

Arrest125

Community resolution121

Summons / charged by post51

Not recorded36

Gender

Male926

Female152

Other1

Officer-Defined Ethnicity

Self-defined where available

90.3%

White

4.2%

Black

3.3%

Asian

2.2%

Other

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

Expert Safety Insights

Ward Safety Rankings

45 wards

Highest Crime

#	Ward	Crimes	Rate
1	Chester City & the Garden Quarter	348	144.4
2	Wolverham	114	143.4
3	Northwich Leftwich	90	129.3
4	Central & Grange	139	105.6
5	Westminster	70	93.1

Safest Wards

	Ward	Crimes	Rate
shield	Sandstone	3	0.5
shield	Saughall & Mollington	19	1.9
shield	Willaston & Thornton	9	1.2
shield	Tarporley	15	1.9
shield	Gowy Rural	36	1.9

Growth Analysis

Month-on-Monthtrending_down -3.1%

Year-on-Yeartrending_down -2.3%

12m Rolling Trendtrending_down -0.0%

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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