Hastings has a crime rate of 113.96 per 1,000 residents — around the national average for England and Wales, ranked #277 of 331 local authorities nationally. Crime levels vary significantly across Hastings'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 Hastings?

As of April 2026, Hastings has an annual crime rate of 113.96 per 1,000 residents, based on 1,266 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 Hastings rank nationally for crime?

Hastings ranks #277 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 Hastings?

The most common crime type in Hastings is Violence & Sexual Offences, accounting for 362 incidents in April 2026 — 28.6% 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 Hastings local authority area.

April 2026 Source: Sussex Police Police

Crime in Hastings: Crime Rate & Statistics 2026

Hastings recorded 1,266 crimes in April 2026 — a crime rate of 13.91 per 1,000 residents. This places Hastings at #277 of 331 local authorities in England and Wales. Violence & Sexual Offences accounts for the largest share of crime at 28.6% of all offences recorded. Crime is up 27.1% compared to the same period last year.

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

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Key Statistics

monitoring113.96 crimes per 1,000 residents annually
assignment1,266 crimes recorded in April 2026
leaderboardRanked #277 of 331 UK local authorities by crime rate
trending_upCrime up 27.1% year-on-year

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

Total Crimes

1,266

trending_up +14.6% vs last month

Annual Crime Rate

113.96per 1k

High Risk

National Safety

#277of 331

Top 11% Riskiest UK

East Sussex

#5rank

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: 46	46
On or near Oasthouse Close Map	Violence and sexual offences: 10 Public order: 6 Other theft: 2	10
On or near Supermarket Map	Violence and sexual offences: 12 Public order: 4	12
On or near Nightclub Map	Violence and sexual offences: 12 Public order: 3	12
On or near Parking Area Map	Anti-social behaviour: 14	14
On or near George Street Map	Anti-social behaviour: 8 Public order: 5	8
On or near Havelock Road Map	Shoplifting: 13	13
On or near Petrol Station Map	Other theft: 8 Criminal damage and arson: 4	8
On or near Whitworth Road Map	Shoplifting: 11	11
On or near Harold Place Map	Burglary: 11	11

Crime Breakdown

April 2026

1,266 Total

Violence & Sexual Offences

362

28.6%

Anti-social Behaviour

270

21.3%

Shoplifting

151

11.9%

Criminal Damage & Arson

111

8.8%

Public Order

7.1%

Other Theft

4.9%

Burglary

4.3%

Vehicle Crime

3.4%

Other Crime

2.5%

Drug Offences

2.2%

Robbery

1.9%

Weapons Possession

1.7%

Theft from Person

0.8%

Bicycle Theft

0.6%

Crime Analysis: Hastings

Hastings recorded 1,266 crimes in April 2026, equivalent to a rate of 113.96 per 1,000 residents — one of the higher-crime areas in England and Wales, placing it in the top quarter nationally (#277 of 331 local authorities).

Violence & Sexual Offences makes up the largest share of crime in Hastings at 28.6%. Anti-social Behaviour (21.3%) and Shoplifting (11.9%) are the next most common categories.

Compared to the same period last year, crime in Hastings has risen sharply — by 27.1%. The 12-month trend chart above shows where this change is concentrated across individual offence categories.

All figures are published monthly by Sussex 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

613

Total Stops

26.9%

Arrest Rate

273

Neighbourhoods

Reason for Stop

Controlled drugs

365

Offensive weapons

123

Stolen goods

Article for use in theft

Articles for use in criminal damage

Psychoactive substances

Firearms

Outcome

A no further action disposal337

Arrest165

Community resolution78

Summons / charged by post28

Penalty Notice for Disorder2

Caution (simple or conditional)2

Not recorded1

Officer-Defined Ethnicity

Self-defined where available

81.7%

White

10.5%

Black

4.0%

Asian

3.8%

Other

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

Expert Safety Insights

Ward Safety Rankings

16 wards

Highest Crime

#	Ward	Crimes	Rate
1	Castle	308	263.8
2	Gensing	134	190.0
3	Central St Leonards	128	113.0
4	West St Leonards	75	108.3
5	Old Hastings	84	99.1

Safest Wards

	Ward	Crimes	Rate
shield	Silverhill	36	3.2
shield	St Helens	14	2.9
shield	Maze Hill	24	3.7
shield	Braybrooke	53	7.0
shield	Conquest	54	6.8

Growth Analysis

Month-on-Monthtrending_up +14.6%

Year-on-Yeartrending_up +27.1%

12m Rolling Trendtrending_up +2.4%

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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