{
 "meta": {
  "title": "Recorded crime in England and Wales",
  "standfirst": "Every offence recorded by the police in England and Wales, from 2012/13 to 2024/25. Recorded crime has risen by about 62 per cent over that period, to 6,588,827 offences a year. This page shows what gets recorded, what has gone up and down, and where rates are highest. One thing to hold in mind throughout: a large part of the rise reflects changes in how the police record crime and more victims coming forward, not simply more offending.",
  "basis": "These are crimes recorded by the police, published by the Home Office. They are not the same as the Crime Survey for England and Wales, which asks the public directly about their experience and is the steadier long term guide to many everyday crimes. Police moved onto a stricter recording standard after 2014, which lifted the recorded numbers, and people have become more willing to report some offences. Changes over time should be read with that in mind rather than taken as a simple measure of how much crime is happening.",
  "sourceNote": "Computed from the Home Office police recorded crime open data tables, by police force area, offence group and quarter. Rates use ONS mid year population for each force area. Scotland and Northern Ireland run separate systems and are not included here.",
  "total": 6588827,
  "changePct": 62,
  "firstFy": "2012/13",
  "lastFy": "2024/25",
  "peakFy": "2022/23",
  "ewRate": 84.5
 },
 "trend": {
  "eyebrow": "12 years",
  "heading": "A long rise, and what sits behind it",
  "intro": "The police recorded about 4,063,571 crimes in 2012/13. By 2024/25 that had reached 6,588,827, around 62 per cent higher, with the peak in 2022/23. Much of this is not a simple increase in offending. After 2014 forces were told to record crimes more fully, which lifted the figures, and victims of violence and sexual offences in particular have become more willing to come forward. The separate Crime Survey, which asks the public about their experience, shows many common crimes falling over the longer run.",
  "series": [
   {
    "fy": "2012/13",
    "n": 4063571
   },
   {
    "fy": "2013/14",
    "n": 4028456
   },
   {
    "fy": "2014/15",
    "n": 4167619
   },
   {
    "fy": "2015/16",
    "n": 4517808
   },
   {
    "fy": "2016/17",
    "n": 4974068
   },
   {
    "fy": "2017/18",
    "n": 5528769
   },
   {
    "fy": "2018/19",
    "n": 5959586
   },
   {
    "fy": "2019/20",
    "n": 6079583
   },
   {
    "fy": "2020/21",
    "n": 5444310
   },
   {
    "fy": "2021/22",
    "n": 6339257
   },
   {
    "fy": "2022/23",
    "n": 6737083
   },
   {
    "fy": "2023/24",
    "n": 6658335
   },
   {
    "fy": "2024/25",
    "n": 6588827
   }
  ]
 },
 "mix": {
  "eyebrow": "What gets recorded",
  "heading": "The shape of recorded crime in 2024/25",
  "intro": "Recorded crime is dominated by a few large groups. Violence against the person is the biggest at 1,938,091 offences, followed by theft at 1,777,792 and fraud at 1,281,354. Fraud is recorded centrally rather than by local forces, so it sits a little apart from the rest.",
  "groups": [
   {
    "group": "Violence against the person",
    "n": 1938091,
    "pct": 222
   },
   {
    "group": "Theft offences",
    "n": 1777792,
    "pct": -6
   },
   {
    "group": "Fraud offences",
    "n": 1281354,
    "pct": 151
   },
   {
    "group": "Criminal damage and arson",
    "n": 463099,
    "pct": -13
   },
   {
    "group": "Public order offences",
    "n": 453364,
    "pct": 243
   },
   {
    "group": "Sexual offences",
    "n": 209061,
    "pct": 290
   },
   {
    "group": "Drug offences",
    "n": 205574,
    "pct": -1
   },
   {
    "group": "Miscellaneous crimes against society",
    "n": 123574,
    "pct": 191
   },
   {
    "group": "Robbery",
    "n": 79265,
    "pct": 22
   },
   {
    "group": "Possession of weapons offences",
    "n": 57653,
    "pct": 190
   }
  ]
 },
 "change": {
  "eyebrow": "Up and down",
  "heading": "What has risen and what has fallen",
  "intro": "Not every kind of crime has moved the same way. Since 2012/13 the sharpest recorded rises have been in sexual offences, up about 290 per cent, along with public order, violence and fraud. These are also the groups most affected by the change in recording practice and by greater reporting. At the same time criminal damage and arson has fallen by about 13 per cent, and theft is lower than it was.",
  "risers": [
   {
    "group": "Sexual offences",
    "n": 209061,
    "pct": 290
   },
   {
    "group": "Public order offences",
    "n": 453364,
    "pct": 243
   },
   {
    "group": "Violence against the person",
    "n": 1938091,
    "pct": 222
   },
   {
    "group": "Miscellaneous crimes against society",
    "n": 123574,
    "pct": 191
   },
   {
    "group": "Possession of weapons offences",
    "n": 57653,
    "pct": 190
   },
   {
    "group": "Fraud offences",
    "n": 1281354,
    "pct": 151
   },
   {
    "group": "Robbery",
    "n": 79265,
    "pct": 22
   }
  ],
  "fallers": [
   {
    "group": "Criminal damage and arson",
    "n": 463099,
    "pct": -13
   },
   {
    "group": "Theft offences",
    "n": 1777792,
    "pct": -6
   },
   {
    "group": "Drug offences",
    "n": 205574,
    "pct": -1
   }
  ]
 },
 "byForce": {
  "eyebrow": "Where it is highest",
  "heading": "Recorded crime rates by police force",
  "intro": "Set against resident population, recorded crime varies widely between force areas. The City of London is a special case, recording about 607 offences per 1,000 because its few thousand residents are vastly outnumbered by daytime workers. Among the rest, Cleveland has the highest rate at 119.0 per 1,000 and West Yorkshire follows at 113.0, while Wiltshire has the lowest at 52.5. The England and Wales average is about 84.5. Rates reflect real differences but also recording and reporting, so small gaps mean little.",
  "top": [
   {
    "force": "Cleveland",
    "rate": 119.0,
    "n": 71425,
    "pop": 600369
   },
   {
    "force": "West Yorkshire",
    "rate": 113.0,
    "n": 275196,
    "pop": 2435236
   },
   {
    "force": "Greater Manchester",
    "rate": 105.9,
    "n": 318679,
    "pop": 3009664
   },
   {
    "force": "South Yorkshire",
    "rate": 104.4,
    "n": 149368,
    "pop": 1430623
   },
   {
    "force": "Metropolitan Police",
    "rate": 104.0,
    "n": 943924,
    "pop": 9074625
   },
   {
    "force": "West Midlands",
    "rate": 101.6,
    "n": 308491,
    "pop": 3036605
   },
   {
    "force": "Humberside",
    "rate": 97.4,
    "n": 93719,
    "pop": 962532
   },
   {
    "force": "Gwent",
    "rate": 96.1,
    "n": 57846,
    "pop": 601686
   },
   {
    "force": "Avon and Somerset",
    "rate": 92.8,
    "n": 168349,
    "pop": 1813665
   },
   {
    "force": "Northumbria",
    "rate": 91.7,
    "n": 138464,
    "pop": 1509809
   }
  ],
  "bottom": [
   {
    "force": "Wiltshire",
    "rate": 52.5,
    "n": 40294,
    "pop": 767575
   },
   {
    "force": "North Yorkshire",
    "rate": 53.3,
    "n": 45020,
    "pop": 844571
   },
   {
    "force": "Suffolk",
    "rate": 56.6,
    "n": 44496,
    "pop": 786231
   },
   {
    "force": "Surrey",
    "rate": 59.0,
    "n": 73709,
    "pop": 1248649
   },
   {
    "force": "West Mercia",
    "rate": 60.3,
    "n": 80845,
    "pop": 1340814
   }
  ],
  "ewRate": 84.5,
  "city": {
   "force": "London, City of",
   "rate": 607.4,
   "n": 9179,
   "pop": 15111
  },
  "totalForces": 43
 },
 "questions": {
  "eyebrow": "Questions this raises",
  "heading": "For policing and the public",
  "items": [
   "Recorded crime is far higher than a decade ago, yet much of that is better recording and more reporting. How should success be judged when the count and the experience point in different directions?",
   "Violence and sexual offences have risen most in the records. How much is more crime, and how much is more victims finally being heard?",
   "Fraud is now one of the largest crime types yet is recorded centrally and rarely reaches a charge. Is it policed in proportion to its scale?",
   "Rates differ sharply between force areas. How much reflects real risk, and how much reflects different recording and reporting?"
  ]
 },
 "sources": [
  {
   "name": "Police recorded crime open data tables (Home Office)",
   "licence": "Open Government Licence v3.0",
   "url": "https://www.gov.uk/government/statistical-data-sets/police-recorded-crime-and-outcomes-open-data-tables"
  },
  {
   "name": "Population estimates for police force areas (ONS)",
   "licence": "Open Government Licence v3.0",
   "url": "https://www.ons.gov.uk/peoplepopulationandcommunity/populationandmigration/populationestimates"
  }
 ],
 "caveats": [
  "These are police recorded crimes, not the Crime Survey for England and Wales. The survey is the better long term guide to many common crimes and shows a different, gentler trend.",
  "A stricter recording standard from 2014 and greater willingness to report lifted recorded numbers, so part of the rise is not more offending.",
  "Fraud is recorded centrally through Action Fraud and partner bodies, so it is shown nationally and excluded from individual force rates.",
  "Force rates use resident population and do not adjust for commuters, visitors or night time populations, which raises rates in city centre forces.",
  "The latest full financial year shown is 2024/25; the most recent partial year is excluded from trends.",
  "Scotland and Northern Ireland operate separate recording systems and are not covered.",
  "Contains public sector information licensed under the Open Government Licence v3.0."
 ]
}