Updated April 2026310 local authorities

Safest Cities in the UK 2026

City of London is the safest local authority in the UK with an annual crime rate of just 24.0 crimes per 1,000 residents. 177 of 310 areas recorded fewer crimes than the same period last year. The UK average is 81.3 per 1,000.

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

City of London

Safest in UK

24.0 per 1k

Middlesbrough

Highest Crime in UK

178.6 per 1k

81.3

UK Average

per 1k residents

177

Areas Improving

vs same period last year

Complete Rankings

Rank	City / Town	County	Rate (per 1k)	Population	YoY
1	City of London	Inner London	24.0	8,584	-5.7%
2	Isles of Scilly	—	32.4	2,055	-60.0%
3	Broadland	Norfolk	37.9	131,723	-11.6%
4	Richmondshire	—	38.5	49,781	+3.9%
5	Mid Suffolk	Suffolk	39.9	102,701	-4.8%
6	Waverley	Surrey	40.9	128,226	+0.6%
7	Rutland	—	41.0	41,050	-28.7%
8	Craven	—	42.4	56,927	-10.0%
9	Babergh	Suffolk	42.6	92,342	-9.7%
10	Wokingham	—	42.7	177,502	-17.5%
11	Hart	Hampshire	42.7	99,404	-21.1%
12	South Hams	Devon	43.0	88,628	-6.3%
13	Ryedale	—	43.1	54,707	-30.5%
14	West Devon	Devon	43.4	57,094	+6.6%
15	East Hampshire	Hampshire	44.2	125,742	-10.5%
16	North Norfolk	Norfolk	44.4	102,978	+25.2%
17	South Oxfordshire	Oxfordshire	44.6	149,088	+0.5%
18	South Norfolk	Norfolk	45.5	141,948	-3.3%
19	East Devon	Devon	45.6	150,823	-9.3%
20	Wealden	East Sussex	45.8	160,152	+8.0%
21	Rochford	Essex	47.1	85,662	+6.5%
22	Maldon	Essex	47.1	66,211	-2.2%
23	West Oxfordshire	Oxfordshire	47.8	114,236	-3.3%
24	Horsham	West Sussex	47.9	146,776	+3.4%
25	Derbyshire Dales	Derbyshire	48.5	71,535	+1.5%
26	Harborough	Leicestershire	49.4	97,623	-9.7%
27	Dorset	—	49.4	379,580	-7.0%
28	Hambleton	—	49.9	90,692	-1.8%
29	Torridge	Devon	49.9	68,114	+2.0%
30	Ribble Valley	Lancashire	50.0	61,565	-18.2%
31	North Kesteven	Lincolnshire	50.3	118,072	+21.2%
32	Rushcliffe	Nottinghamshire	51.8	119,077	+12.9%
33	New Forest	Hampshire	51.9	175,782	-10.8%
34	Mid Sussex	West Sussex	52.2	152,566	+6.9%
35	Harrogate	—	52.2	162,668	-6.2%
36	South Lakeland	—	52.6	104,450	—
37	East Suffolk	Suffolk	52.8	246,060	+1.3%
38	Vale of White Horse	Oxfordshire	53.1	138,913	+1.1%
39	Breckland	Norfolk	53.4	141,477	+8.2%
40	Fareham	Hampshire	53.7	114,512	-6.9%
41	Uttlesford	Essex	54.2	91,344	+1.4%
42	Malvern Hills	Worcestershire	54.7	79,487	-8.9%
43	Shropshire	—	54.9	323,607	-16.2%
44	South Staffordshire	Staffordshire	55.1	110,475	-10.1%
45	Winchester	Hampshire	55.2	127,444	+5.9%
46	Mid Devon	Devon	55.3	82,853	+1.1%
47	South Cambridgeshire	Cambridgeshire	55.5	162,117	+21.6%
48	Elmbridge	Surrey	55.6	138,755	+3.0%
49	Surrey Heath	Surrey	55.7	90,456	-11.8%
50	Selby	—	55.8	91,988	-3.0%
51	Test Valley	Hampshire	55.9	130,491	-6.3%
52	Teignbridge	Devon	56.0	134,802	-8.9%
53	Castle Point	Essex	56.0	89,582	+4.1%
54	Eden	—	56.3	54,737	+22400.0%
55	East Cambridgeshire	Cambridgeshire	56.6	87,763	+2.6%
56	West Suffolk	Suffolk	56.9	179,948	-1.3%
57	Wiltshire	—	57.1	510,333	+5.0%
58	East Riding of Yorkshire	—	57.2	342,215	+5.4%
59	Adur	West Sussex	57.3	64,543	+10.5%
60	West Berkshire	—	57.4	161,447	-12.6%
61	Herefordshire, County of	—	57.5	187,032	-18.3%
62	Braintree	Essex	57.7	155,265	+3.0%
63	Bromsgrove	Worcestershire	57.9	99,183	-23.9%
64	Mole Valley	Surrey	58.6	87,387	+11.4%
65	Sevenoaks	Kent	58.6	120,515	+8.2%
66	Oadby and Wigston	Leicestershire	58.6	57,747	-1.3%
67	Central Bedfordshire	—	58.8	294,251	-2.1%
68	King's Lynn and West Norfolk	Norfolk	59.2	154,326	+0.5%
69	Lewes	East Sussex	59.3	99,909	+4.5%
70	Buckinghamshire	—	59.6	553,078	+1.8%
71	Melton	Leicestershire	59.7	51,752	-19.2%
72	North Warwickshire	Warwickshire	60.0	65,036	-12.7%
73	Copeland	—	60.2	67,076	+40400.0%
74	North West Leicestershire	Leicestershire	60.4	104,707	-6.7%
75	Rother	East Sussex	60.5	93,114	-13.1%
76	North Hertfordshire	Hertfordshire	60.8	133,210	+2.0%
77	Eastleigh	Hampshire	60.9	136,444	+3.9%
78	Bracknell Forest	—	61.3	124,605	-1.7%
79	South Derbyshire	Derbyshire	61.3	107,206	-18.4%
80	West Lancashire	Lancashire	61.5	117,429	-24.8%
81	Stratford-on-Avon	Warwickshire	61.5	134,724	-0.9%
82	Hinckley and Bosworth	Leicestershire	61.6	113,641	-10.4%
83	Three Rivers	Hertfordshire	61.7	93,772	+23.7%
84	Staffordshire Moorlands	Staffordshire	61.8	95,844	-0.9%
85	Windsor and Maidenhead	—	61.8	153,497	+13.6%
86	Tunbridge Wells	Kent	61.9	115,314	+12.5%
87	Lichfield	Staffordshire	61.9	106,436	-1.4%
88	Gedling	Nottinghamshire	62.1	117,264	-0.1%
89	Cheshire East	—	62.3	398,772	+3.7%
90	Tonbridge and Malling	Kent	62.5	132,201	+3.3%
91	Tandridge	Surrey	62.9	87,877	+1.3%
92	Wychavon	Worcestershire	63.1	132,495	-8.8%
93	Chichester	West Sussex	63.6	124,071	-0.7%
94	East Hertfordshire	Hertfordshire	63.8	150,159	+6.3%
95	North Devon	Devon	64.9	98,612	-3.2%
96	Basingstoke and Deane	Hampshire	64.9	185,154	-6.3%
97	Isle of Anglesey	—	65.2	68,879	+12.3%
98	Blaby	Leicestershire	65.4	102,924	-1.8%
99	Vale of Glamorgan	—	65.5	131,939	+7.2%
100	Warrington	—	65.6	210,973	-1.4%
101	Richmond upon Thames	Outer London	66.2	195,277	-4.0%
102	Huntingdonshire	Cambridgeshire	66.3	180,832	-13.1%
103	South Kesteven	Lincolnshire	66.9	143,405	+7.7%
104	North East Derbyshire	Derbyshire	67.1	102,003	+19.7%
105	Powys	—	67.3	133,169	+47.2%
106	Reigate and Banstead	Surrey	67.6	150,846	+3.7%
107	High Peak	Derbyshire	67.6	90,935	-1.4%
108	Cornwall	—	67.7	570,305	-0.1%
109	Allerdale	—	67.7	96,153	+29250.0%
110	Woking	Surrey	68.1	103,943	+2.0%
111	Cheshire West and Chester	—	68.1	357,149	-2.3%
112	Brentwood	Essex	68.9	77,048	-4.7%
113	Cherwell	Oxfordshire	69.1	161,015	+8.5%
114	Epping Forest	Essex	69.5	134,980	+2.4%
115	St Albans	Hertfordshire	69.7	148,169	-2.0%
116	Ceredigion	—	70.1	71,473	+190.2%
117	Flintshire	—	70.2	154,960	+3.9%
118	Fylde	Lancashire	70.3	81,375	-18.3%
119	East Staffordshire	Staffordshire	70.8	124,021	-4.8%
120	Merton	Outer London	71.1	215,187	-6.5%
121	Rugby	Warwickshire	71.3	114,363	+3.6%
122	Sutton	Outer London	71.7	209,636	+2.3%
123	Stafford	Staffordshire	72.5	136,870	+7.5%
124	Northumberland	—	73.2	320,566	-2.4%
125	Warwick	Warwickshire	73.3	148,454	+10.3%
126	Bexley	Outer London	73.4	246,475	+0.2%
127	Neath Port Talbot	—	73.5	142,290	-6.5%
128	Mendip	—	73.5	116,089	-12.3%
129	Chelmsford	Essex	73.9	181,523	+18.5%
130	Charnwood	Leicestershire	74.0	183,970	-4.3%
131	Gosport	Hampshire	74.0	81,949	-1.6%
132	South Holland	Lincolnshire	74.4	95,122	-6.7%
133	Gwynedd	—	74.5	117,392	+3.0%
134	Wirral	Merseyside	74.5	320,199	-11.9%
135	Ashford	Kent	74.5	132,747	-1.5%
136	Dudley	West Midlands	74.6	323,488	-2.9%
137	Arun	West Sussex	74.7	164,887	+1.5%
138	Broxtowe	Nottinghamshire	74.8	110,940	+24.0%
139	South Gloucestershire	—	74.8	290,424	+11.2%
140	Chorley	Lancashire	75.0	117,733	0.0%
141	Rushmoor	Hampshire	75.1	99,759	-11.7%
142	Isle of Wight	—	75.2	140,459	-7.1%
143	Guildford	Surrey	75.2	143,647	-11.2%
144	Solihull	West Midlands	75.4	216,240	-3.1%
145	South Ribble	Lancashire	75.8	111,035	-17.5%
146	Bridgend	—	75.9	145,490	-8.3%
147	South Somerset	—	75.9	172,670	+10.2%
148	Tamworth	Staffordshire	76.2	78,642	+1.7%
149	Runnymede	Surrey	76.4	88,079	-1.6%
150	Wyre	Lancashire	77.0	111,946	-13.9%
151	Amber Valley	Derbyshire	77.1	126,204	+5.3%
152	Folkestone and Hythe	Kent	77.7	109,759	-12.9%
153	Harrow	Outer London	78.0	261,205	+5.0%
154	Rhondda Cynon Taf	—	78.2	237,653	-15.7%
155	Epsom and Ewell	Surrey	78.4	80,937	+34.9%
156	Sefton	Merseyside	78.5	279,233	+0.9%
157	Havant	Hampshire	78.6	124,210	+5.3%
158	Carmarthenshire	—	78.7	187,898	+16.2%
159	Swansea	—	78.9	238,491	-11.4%
160	Redditch	Worcestershire	79.0	87,034	-30.6%
161	West Lindsey	Lincolnshire	79.1	95,153	+11.4%
162	Bournemouth, Christchurch and Poole	—	79.1	400,195	-1.4%
163	Cannock Chase	Staffordshire	79.7	100,523	+5.8%
164	North Tyneside	Tyne and Wear	79.7	208,968	-14.5%
165	Bath and North East Somerset	—	80.3	193,409	+15.8%
166	Newark and Sherwood	Nottinghamshire	80.3	122,959	+3.2%
167	Bolsover	Derbyshire	80.6	80,270	+10.2%
168	Swindon	—	80.8	233,411	+4.2%
169	Bromley	Outer London	81.0	329,991	-4.1%
170	North Somerset	—	81.7	216,729	+9.3%
171	Dacorum	Hertfordshire	82.0	155,081	-2.9%
172	Wyre Forest	Worcestershire	82.0	101,609	-23.3%
173	Newcastle-under-Lyme	Staffordshire	82.0	123,299	-2.7%
174	Dover	Kent	82.2	116,411	-17.3%
175	Hertsmere	Hertfordshire	82.7	107,827	+2.6%
176	Spelthorne	Surrey	82.7	102,960	-3.2%
177	Kingston upon Thames	Outer London	82.7	168,065	+5.3%
178	York	—	83.2	202,821	-7.0%
179	Erewash	Derbyshire	83.3	112,908	-5.9%
180	North Northamptonshire	—	83.6	359,523	-1.9%
181	Worthing	West Sussex	83.6	111,338	+8.5%
182	Pembrokeshire	—	83.7	123,359	-0.4%
183	Halton	—	84.3	128,478	-4.2%
184	West Northamptonshire	—	84.3	425,723	-0.7%
185	Gateshead	Tyne and Wear	85.2	196,149	-11.6%
186	Rossendale	Lancashire	85.3	70,868	-13.3%
187	North Lincolnshire	—	85.3	169,684	+5.1%
188	Somerset West and Taunton	—	85.7	157,447	+7.5%
189	Maidstone	Kent	85.8	175,781	+2.9%
190	Telford and Wrekin	—	86.0	185,543	-25.4%
191	Havering	Outer London	86.4	262,052	-0.1%
192	Tendring	Essex	86.5	148,293	+18.3%
193	Fenland	Cambridgeshire	86.6	102,461	-3.8%
194	Welwyn Hatfield	Hertfordshire	87.0	119,835	-3.4%
195	Colchester	Essex	87.1	192,716	+6.4%
196	Carlisle	—	87.7	110,025	+32933.3%
197	Cambridge	Cambridgeshire	88.0	145,674	+2.9%
198	Bedford	—	88.1	185,224	+3.9%
199	East Lindsey	Lincolnshire	88.3	142,295	+12.1%
200	Barnet	Outer London	88.4	389,344	+4.1%
201	Oxford	Oxfordshire	88.5	162,040	+3.3%
202	Knowsley	Merseyside	88.8	154,518	-0.9%
203	Broxbourne	Hertfordshire	89.0	99,007	+18.8%
204	St. Helens	Merseyside	89.3	183,248	-2.0%
205	Barrow-in-Furness	—	89.9	67,406	—
206	Lancaster	Lancashire	89.9	142,939	-21.7%
207	Sunderland	Tyne and Wear	90.3	274,173	-11.8%
208	Luton	—	90.4	225,261	-3.5%
209	Gravesham	Kent	90.5	106,902	+5.5%
210	Redbridge	Outer London	90.6	310,261	+0.8%
211	Pendle	Lancashire	90.9	95,758	-8.3%
212	Ipswich	Suffolk	91.4	139,643	+18.1%
213	Basildon	Essex	91.8	187,567	+0.4%
214	Kirklees	West Yorkshire	92.5	433,213	-3.9%
215	Thurrock	—	92.8	175,993	+9.2%
216	Ashfield	Nottinghamshire	93.0	126,299	+13.9%
217	South Tyneside	Tyne and Wear	93.4	147,777	-16.6%
218	Coventry	West Midlands	93.5	345,321	-3.3%
219	Bassetlaw	Nottinghamshire	93.5	117,803	+2.0%
220	Exeter	Devon	93.6	130,707	-8.4%
221	Milton Keynes	—	93.6	287,060	-0.6%
222	Wrexham	—	93.7	135,122	+13.9%
223	Wandsworth	Inner London	95.1	327,506	+1.5%
224	Wolverhampton	West Midlands	95.2	263,726	-10.6%
225	Conwy	—	95.5	114,743	+15.5%
226	Walsall	West Midlands	95.5	284,126	+1.4%
227	Swale	Kent	96.4	151,677	-2.0%
228	Cardiff	—	96.4	362,310	+2.5%
229	Sandwell	West Midlands	97.0	341,832	0.0%
230	Merthyr Tydfil	—	97.4	58,839	-7.8%
231	Waltham Forest	Outer London	97.5	278,428	-5.2%
232	Slough	—	98.2	158,500	+7.7%
233	Medway	—	98.2	279,773	-5.4%
234	Torbay	—	98.5	139,324	+5.6%
235	Harlow	Essex	99.4	93,330	+1.5%
236	Croydon	Outer London	99.9	390,724	+0.3%
237	Barnsley	South Yorkshire	100.2	244,572	-4.7%
238	Great Yarmouth	Norfolk	100.7	99,750	-8.5%
239	Canterbury	Kent	101.1	157,429	+4.7%
240	Newcastle upon Tyne	Tyne and Wear	101.3	300,127	-11.3%
241	Plymouth	—	101.7	264,695	+4.8%
242	Denbighshire	—	102.0	95,820	+7.1%
243	Barking and Dagenham	Outer London	102.4	218,871	-8.8%
244	Crawley	West Sussex	102.5	118,492	-2.3%
245	Enfield	Outer London	102.6	329,985	+2.5%
246	Brighton and Hove	—	103.0	277,103	-0.2%
247	Watford	Hertfordshire	103.0	102,245	+5.6%
248	Southend-on-Sea	—	103.1	180,685	+6.7%
249	Sedgemoor	—	103.3	125,341	+4.4%
250	Rotherham	South Yorkshire	103.4	265,806	+16.9%
251	Dartford	Kent	104.0	116,754	-1.1%
252	Nuneaton and Bedworth	Warwickshire	104.3	134,198	+1.2%
253	Reading	—	104.4	174,223	+8.3%
254	Blackburn with Darwen	—	104.4	154,741	-13.8%
255	Sheffield	South Yorkshire	104.4	556,523	-5.6%
256	Boston	Lincolnshire	104.7	70,505	+6.3%
257	Worcester	Worcestershire	105.0	103,869	-20.2%
258	Norwich	Norfolk	105.5	143,924	-3.6%
259	Stevenage	Hertfordshire	106.8	89,498	+9.5%
260	Hounslow	Outer London	107.4	288,181	+2.7%
261	Chesterfield	Derbyshire	107.7	103,568	-1.6%
262	Thanet	Kent	107.8	140,587	-3.6%
263	Greenwich	Outer London	108.0	289,065	-5.0%
264	Mansfield	Nottinghamshire	108.5	110,482	+8.8%
265	County Durham	—	108.8	522,067	+12.8%
266	Portsmouth	—	109.0	208,001	+1.6%
267	Ealing	Outer London	109.1	367,116	-0.3%
268	Calderdale	West Yorkshire	109.6	206,631	-6.1%
269	Lewisham	Inner London	110.4	300,553	+4.1%
270	Wakefield	West Yorkshire	111.3	353,370	-10.3%
271	Scarborough	—	111.9	108,736	+4.2%
272	Hillingdon	Outer London	112.3	305,907	-4.4%
273	Darlington	—	112.3	107,796	-4.0%
274	Camden	Inner London	113.3	210,136	-3.9%
275	Birmingham	West Midlands	113.6	1,144,922	-2.0%
276	Eastbourne	East Sussex	113.9	101,680	-2.3%
277	Hastings	East Sussex	114.0	90,995	+27.1%
278	Peterborough	—	115.7	215,670	-4.5%
279	Hammersmith and Fulham	Inner London	116.7	183,156	-1.3%
280	Leicester	—	117.3	368,571	-11.8%
281	Leeds	West Yorkshire	117.5	811,953	-5.0%
282	Brent	Outer London	117.7	339,821	+7.8%
283	Tower Hamlets	Inner London	119.2	310,306	+2.1%
284	Preston	Lancashire	120.5	147,834	-15.7%
285	Westminster	Inner London	120.8	204,236	-16.7%
286	Southampton	—	122.4	248,920	+3.4%
287	Bradford	West Yorkshire	122.6	546,412	-2.9%
288	Haringey	Inner London	123.2	264,238	-3.0%
289	North East Lincolnshire	—	123.2	156,967	-1.7%
290	Derby	—	123.4	261,364	+8.6%
291	Hyndburn	Lancashire	123.6	82,237	-20.8%
292	Liverpool	Merseyside	124.3	486,088	-0.6%
293	Kensington and Chelsea	Inner London	124.7	143,373	-12.5%
294	Doncaster	South Yorkshire	125.3	308,104	-7.7%
295	Kingston upon Hull, City of	—	127.3	267,013	+5.5%
296	Redcar and Cleveland	—	128.7	136,530	+0.8%
297	Stoke-on-Trent	—	129.4	258,369	+3.3%
298	Stockton-on-Tees	—	129.7	196,593	+18.9%
299	Nottingham	—	129.7	323,635	+12.1%
300	Newham	Inner London	133.2	351,030	+4.9%
301	Burnley	Lancashire	134.6	94,651	+3.1%
302	Lambeth	Inner London	136.1	317,650	-1.1%
303	Bristol, City of	—	136.5	472,467	+9.0%
304	Southwark	Inner London	136.7	307,640	+3.3%
305	Islington	Inner London	137.9	216,590	+0.4%
306	Lincoln	Lincolnshire	138.0	103,814	+9.0%
307	Hackney	Inner London	140.6	259,147	-1.0%
308	Hartlepool	—	157.9	92,338	-11.8%
309	Blackpool	—	173.0	141,039	-22.8%
310	Middlesbrough	—	178.6	143,922	+1.9%

Frequently Asked Questions

What is the safest city in the UK? expand_more

City of London is currently the safest city in the UK with an annual crime rate of 24.0 crimes per 1,000 residents.

Which city has the highest crime rate in the UK? expand_more

Middlesbrough has the highest crime rate at 178.6 crimes per 1,000 residents annually.

Is crime in the UK getting better or worse? expand_more

177 of 331 local authorities recorded fewer crimes than the same period last year.

Data: Police.uk (OGL v3.0) · Population: ONS Census 2021 · Methodology

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