Is Middlesbrough safe?

Middlesbrough has a crime rate of 178.63 per 1,000 residents — below the national average for England and Wales, placing it among the lower-crime areas in the UK at #310 of 331 local authorities. Crime levels vary significantly across Middlesbrough'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 Middlesbrough?

As of April 2026, Middlesbrough has an annual crime rate of 178.63 per 1,000 residents, based on 2,392 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 Middlesbrough rank nationally for crime?

Middlesbrough ranks #310 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 Middlesbrough?

The most common crime type in Middlesbrough is Violence & Sexual Offences, accounting for 744 incidents in April 2026 — 31.1% 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 Middlesbrough local authority area.

April 2026 Source: Cleveland Police Police

Crime in Middlesbrough: Crime Rate & Statistics 2026

Middlesbrough is among the safer areas in England and Wales, recording 2,392 crimes in April 2026 — a crime rate of 16.13 per 1,000 residents. This places Middlesbrough at #310 of 331 local authorities in England and Wales. Violence & Sexual Offences accounts for the largest share of crime at 31.1% of all offences recorded. Crime is up 1.9% compared to the same period last year.

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Key Statistics

monitoring178.63 crimes per 1,000 residents annually
assignment2,392 crimes recorded in April 2026
leaderboardRanked #310 of 331 UK local authorities by crime rate
trending_upCrime up 1.9% year-on-year

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

Total Crimes

2,392

trending_down -8.6% vs last month

Annual Crime Rate

178.63per 1k

High Risk

National Safety

#310of 331

Ranked by annual rate

National Population

143,922

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 Police Station Map	Violence and sexual offences: 50 Other crime: 7 Public order: 4	50
On or near Hospital Map	Violence and sexual offences: 47 Public order: 15 Criminal damage and arson: 6	47
On or near Balfour Terrace Map	Shoplifting: 57	57
On or near Beverley Road Map	Shoplifting: 41	41
On or near Hill Street Shopping Centre Map	Shoplifting: 36 Possession of weapons: 2	36
On or near Broughton Avenue Map	Shoplifting: 29	29
On or near Supermarket Map	Shoplifting: 26	26
On or near Parking Area Map	Anti-social behaviour: 19	19
On or near Parking Area Map	Violence and sexual offences: 15	15
On or near Albert Road Map	Violence and sexual offences: 13	13

Crime Breakdown

April 2026

2,392 Total

Violence & Sexual Offences

744

31.1%

Anti-social Behaviour

375

15.7%

Shoplifting

325

13.6%

Criminal Damage & Arson

258

10.8%

Public Order

197

8.2%

Other Theft

101

4.2%

Vehicle Crime

3.9%

Burglary

3.2%

Drug Offences

3.0%

Other Crime

2.5%

Robbery

2.0%

Weapons Possession

0.8%

Bicycle Theft

0.6%

Theft from Person

0.3%

Crime Analysis: Middlesbrough

Middlesbrough recorded 2,392 crimes in April 2026, equivalent to a rate of 178.63 per 1,000 residents — broadly average for England and Wales, ranked #310 of 331.

Violence & Sexual Offences makes up the largest share of crime in Middlesbrough at 31.1%. Anti-social Behaviour (15.7%) and Shoplifting (13.6%) are the next most common categories.

Compared to the same period last year, crime in Middlesbrough has risen slightly — by 1.9%. The 12-month trend chart above shows where this change is concentrated across individual offence categories.

All figures are published monthly by Cleveland 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

382

Total Stops

12.3%

Arrest Rate

Neighbourhoods

Reason for Stop

Controlled drugs

239

Offensive weapons

Article for use in theft

Stolen goods

Evidence of offences under the Act

Anything to threaten or harm anyone

Firearms

Outcome

A no further action disposal235

Not recorded85

Arrest47

Caution (simple or conditional)8

Community resolution3

Summons / charged by post2

Khat or Cannabis warning2

Gender

Male246

Female66

Officer-Defined Ethnicity

Self-defined where available

89.0%

White

7.3%

Asian

2.0%

Other

1.7%

Black

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

Expert Safety Insights

Ward Safety Rankings

20 wards

Highest Crime

#	Ward	Crimes	Rate
1	Central	560	262.2
2	Brambles & Thorntree	130	182.1
3	Park End & Beckfield	144	177.9
4	Berwick Hills & Pallister	177	174.9
5	Hemlington	97	161.1

Safest Wards

	Ward	Crimes	Rate
shield	Marton West	14	1.9
shield	Nunthorpe	22	4.1
shield	Marton East	31	5.1
shield	Trimdon	41	6.5
shield	North Ormesby	80	6.2

Growth Analysis

Month-on-Monthtrending_down -8.6%

Year-on-Yeartrending_up +1.9%

12m Rolling Trendtrending_down -0.3%

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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