How to check crime in your area
- Press “Crime near me” to use your location, or type a postcode, street or town. You can also click the map.
- Pick a month to see how it compares with earlier ones. The newest month is about two months ago.
- Read the breakdown. The list shows each type of crime with its share of the total; click one to show only that type on the map.
- Check the streets list to see which points have the most reports, then use Street View to see what is there, often a station, a shop or a pub.
What the crime types mean
- Anti-social behaviour: nuisance, rowdy or inconsiderate behaviour, such as noise, littering or harassment, that is reported but is not always a crime.
- Violence and sexual offences: assaults from common assault upwards, harassment, and sexual offences.
- Shoplifting and other theft: theft from shops, and thefts that fit no other group, such as from a garden or workplace.
- Burglary: entering a home or business to steal. Vehicle crime is theft of or from a vehicle, or tampering with one.
- Criminal damage and arson, public order, drugs, robbery, bicycle theft, theft from the person (such as pickpocketing) and possession of weapons follow their everyday meaning.
Is this area safe? Reading the numbers fairly
A crime count measures where crime is reported, not how risky a place is for you. A street with a railway station or a large supermarket can show dozens of crimes a month while the houses behind it show none, because shoplifting and incidents in busy public places make up much of the total. To judge an area, compare two places of the same kind, look at several months rather than one, and look at the types: burglary and vehicle crime matter more to a resident than shoplifting in a town centre.
Police force websites and the neighbourhood pages on police.uk also show your local policing team and their current priorities.
Report a crime
In an emergency, or if a crime is happening now, call 999. To report a crime that is not an emergency, call 101 or use your force’s online form. To report information anonymously, contact the independent charity Crimestoppers on 0800 555 111.