Medway has a crime rate of 99.39 per 1,000 residents — around the national average for England and Wales, ranked #229 of 330 local authorities nationally. Crime levels vary significantly across Medway'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 Medway?

As of March 2026, Medway has an annual crime rate of 99.39 per 1,000 residents, based on 2,696 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 Medway rank nationally for crime?

Medway ranks #229 out of 330 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 Medway?

The most common crime type in Medway is Violence & Sexual Offences, accounting for 985 incidents in March 2026 — 36.5% 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 Medway local authority area.

March 2026 Source: Kent Police Police

Medway Crime Intelligence Report

Medway recorded 2,696 crimes in March 2026, equating to a crime rate of 9.64 per 1,000 residents. This places Medway at #46 of 330 local authorities nationally by total crime volume. Crime has increased by 21.2% compared to the previous month. Year-on-year, crime levels are 0.6% lower.

info Crime is above average compared to other UK areas.

compare_arrows Compare

Key Statistics

monitoring99.39 crimes per 1,000 residents annually
assignment2,696 crimes recorded in March 2026
leaderboardRanked #229 of 330 UK local authorities by crime rate
trending_downCrime down 0.6% year-on-year

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

Total Crimes

2,696

trending_up +21.2% vs last month

Annual Crime Rate

99.39per 1k

Moderate

National Safety

#229of 330

Ranked by annual rate

National Population

279,773

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 Parking Area Map	Anti-social behaviour: 39 Public order: 6	39
On or near Parking Area Map	Violence and sexual offences: 39	39
On or near Supermarket Map	Shoplifting: 38	38
On or near Shopping Area Map	Shoplifting: 22 Anti-social behaviour: 12	22
On or near Petrol Station Map	Shoplifting: 32	32
On or near Barnfield Map	Anti-social behaviour: 26	26
On or near Parking Area Map	Shoplifting: 24	24
On or near Wharf Road Map	Public order: 9 Criminal damage and arson: 9 Drugs: 3	9
On or near Sports/Recreation Area Map	Anti-social behaviour: 20	20
On or near High Street Map	Violence and sexual offences: 20	20

Crime Breakdown

March 2026

2,696 Total

Violence & Sexual Offences

985

36.5%

Anti-social Behaviour

533

19.8%

Criminal Damage & Arson

232

8.6%

Shoplifting

193

7.2%

Other Theft

175

6.5%

Public Order

147

5.5%

Vehicle Crime

116

4.3%

Drug Offences

3.5%

Other Crime

2.9%

Burglary

2.3%

Robbery

1.0%

Weapons Possession

0.9%

Bicycle Theft

0.6%

Theft from Person

0.4%

Stop & Search

March 2026

1,611

Total Stops

20.3%

Arrest Rate

279

Neighbourhoods

Reason for Stop

Controlled drugs

918

Offensive weapons

211

Stolen goods

201

Article for use in theft

159

Articles for use in criminal damage

Goods on which duty has not been paid etc.

Game or poaching equipment

Firearms

Outcome

A no further action disposal912

Community resolution363

Arrest327

Summons / charged by post6

Khat or Cannabis warning2

Caution (simple or conditional)1

Gender

Male1,336

Female248

Other27

Officer-Defined Ethnicity

Self-defined where available

73.1%

White

8.1%

Black

8.0%

Asian

5.6%

Other

5.1%

Mixed

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

Expert Safety Insights

Ward Safety Rankings

22 wards

Highest Crime

#	Ward	Crimes	Rate
1	River	397	170.2
2	Gillingham North	245	147.9
3	Luton and Wayfield	226	138.4
4	Gillingham South	251	136.6
5	Chatham Central	243	135.9

Safest Wards

	Ward	Crimes	Rate
shield	Hempstead and Wigmore	35	4.3
shield	Rainham South	52	3.8
shield	Cuxton and Halling	38	5.8
shield	Lordswood and Capstone	35	3.9
shield	Rainham Central	56	4.5

Growth Analysis

Month-on-Monthtrending_up +21.2%

Year-on-Yeartrending_down -0.6%

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 330 local authorities in England & Wales.

View full methodology arrow_forward

Analyse a Postcode

Get street-level safety data for any postcode in Medway.

Compare Medway with other cities

Open Comparator

Police Force

local_police

Kent Police

279 policing neighbourhoods

call101

notifications

Follow This Area

Get a free monthly email when new crime data is published for Medway.

add_alert Follow Medway

Free · Monthly · No spam

Free Download

PDF Crime Report

picture_as_pdf

check_circle12-month crime trend analysis
check_circleCrime type breakdown
check_circleLocal & national rankings
check_circleRisk assessment score

Free account required · Instant download

Data Integrity & Scale

verifiedPolice.uk Verified

updateMonthly Sync

Our algorithmic insights use standardized models. Read Methodology