Crime in Arun: statistics, rates and trends
15,129 crimes were recorded in Arun in the 12 months to August 2026, 89.0 per 1,000 residents. That is close to the England and Wales rate of 96.7, and up 3% on the year before.
Table of Contents
- Crime map
- Crime in Arun at a glance
- Crime trends in Arun
- Types of crime in Arun
- Home Office recorded crime in Arun
- Arun compared with nearby districts
- Areas within Arun
- Streets with the most crime in Arun
- What happened after crimes were reported in Arun
- Demographics of Arun
- Fly-tipping in Arun
- Questions about crime in Arun
- About this data
Crime map
Violence and sexual offences (4,922), anti-social behaviour (3,133) and shoplifting (1,668) made up 64% of all recorded crime. Its crime rate ranks 134th of the 302 districts covered by this site (1 = highest), in the upper half.
| Measure | Arun | West Sussex | England and Wales |
|---|---|---|---|
| Crimes, the 12 months to August 2026 | 15,129 | 76,272 | 5,618,064 |
| Crimes per 1,000 residents | 89.0 | 83.4 | 96.7 |
| Change on previous 12 months | +3% | +4% | -1% |
| Population | 170,064 | 915,037 | 58,127,638 |
The year to August 2026 had the most recorded crime in Arun of any year here (15,129 crimes). Between the years to August 2018 and 2026 it rose 15%, while across England and Wales it fell 4%.
| Period | Crimes | Per 1,000 | England and Wales per 1,000 |
|---|---|---|---|
| Year to August 2026 | 15,129 | 89.0 | 96.7 |
| Year to August 2025 | 14,686 | 86.4 | 97.2 |
| Year to August 2024 | 13,774 | 81.0 | 97.9 |
| Year to August 2023 | 13,622 | 80.1 | n/a |
| Year to August 2022 | 13,126 | 77.2 | 102.0 |
| Year to August 2021 | 14,630 | 86.0 | 101.4 |
| Year to August 2020 | 13,955 | 82.1 | 102.7 |
| Year to August 2019 | 13,564 | 79.8 | 101.7 |
| Year to August 2018 | 13,158 | 77.4 | 100.8 |
Month by month
| Month | Crimes |
|---|---|
| August 2026 | 1,475 |
| July 2026 | 1,539 |
| June 2026 | 1,408 |
| May 2026 | 1,470 |
| April 2026 | 1,281 |
| March 2026 | 1,317 |
| February 2026 | 1,104 |
| January 2026 | 1,088 |
| December 2025 | 1,083 |
| November 2025 | 1,075 |
| October 2025 | 1,138 |
| September 2025 | 1,151 |
No category with at least 20 crimes was notably above the England and Wales rate, and theft from the person (86% below) and drugs (30% below) were well below it. On the year before, robbery rose from 129 to 189 and anti-social behaviour rose from 2,432 to 3,133, while theft from the person fell from 61 to 41 and burglary fell from 583 to 424.
| Crime type | Crimes | Per 1,000 | England and Wales per 1,000 | Change on year |
|---|---|---|---|---|
| Violence and sexual offences | 4,922 | 28.9 | 34.2 | +1% |
| Anti-social behaviour | 3,133 | 18.4 | 15.4 | +29% |
| Shoplifting | 1,668 | 9.8 | 8.5 | +3% |
| Criminal damage and arson | 1,236 | 7.3 | 6.7 | -1% |
| Public order | 1,044 | 6.1 | 6.7 | 0% |
| Other theft | 859 | 5.1 | 6.4 | -1% |
| Vehicle crime | 629 | 3.7 | 5.0 | -20% |
| Burglary | 424 | 2.5 | 3.6 | -27% |
| Drugs | 389 | 2.3 | 3.3 | +19% |
| Other crime | 286 | 1.7 | 2.1 | -25% |
| Robbery | 189 | 1.1 | 1.4 | +47% |
| Possession of weapons | 185 | 1.1 | 1.0 | +8% |
| Bicycle theft | 124 | 0.7 | 0.8 | -15% |
| Theft from the person | 41 | 0.2 | 1.7 | -33% |
What each category covers: crime categories.
12,003 crimes, excluding fraud, were recorded by the police in Arun in the year ending March 2026, according to the Home Office's police recorded crime statistics. That is 70.6 per 1,000 residents, lower than the England and Wales rate of 83.2. The total was down 3% on the year ending March 2025 (12,419), against a fall of 2% across England and Wales. Among the 272 districts of England and Wales with a figure for that year, Arun had the 126th lowest rate (the street-level ranking above is among the 302 districts with street-level pages on this site, over the 12 months to August 2026).
Of the crimes recorded in the Sussex Police area in the year ending March 2026, 1.8% were not assigned to a district. Those crimes are counted in the force and England and Wales totals but in no district, so the figure for Arun is a slight undercount.
Offences recorded in Arun, the year ending March 2026
The largest category was violence without injury, with 1,854 offences (15% of the total). Relative to England and Wales, rates were highest for robbery of business property (1.7 times the national rate) and non-residential burglary (1.3 times the national rate). Rates were lowest relative to the national rate for theft from the person (0.14 times), trafficking of drugs (0.38 times) and robbery of personal property (0.46 times).
The largest rises on the year were in bicycle theft (+26%) and arson (+24%). The largest falls were in theft from the person (−40%) and vehicle offences (−21%). Robbery of business property and shoplifting are not compared with the year ending March 2025: from April 2025 the Home Office Counting Rules were clarified so that a theft from a shop in which violence is used or threatened against staff or anyone else is recorded as robbery of business property rather than shoplifting (ONS).
| Offence | Offences | Per 1,000 | England and Wales per 1,000 | Index (E&W = 1.00) | Change on 2024/25 |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| Violence without injury | 1,854 | 10.9 | 13.2 | 0.83 | −5% |
| Shoplifting | 1,531 | 9.0 | 8.1 | 1.11 | – |
| Violence with injury | 1,471 | 8.6 | 8.1 | 1.06 | +8% |
| Criminal damage | 1,194 | 7.0 | 6.8 | 1.03 | −1% |
| Stalking and harassment | 1,122 | 6.6 | 10.1 | 0.65 | +6% |
| Public order offences | 993 | 5.8 | 7.0 | 0.84 | −5% |
| Other theft offences | 877 | 5.2 | 6.5 | 0.79 | −5% |
| Vehicle offences | 612 | 3.6 | 5.0 | 0.72 | −21% |
| Other sexual offences | 338 | 2.0 | 2.3 | 0.87 | −6% |
| Miscellaneous crimes against society | 319 | 1.9 | 2.1 | 0.89 | −12% |
| Residential burglary | 275 | 1.6 | 2.5 | 0.65 | −5% |
| Possession of drugs | 270 | 1.6 | 2.5 | 0.64 | +22% |
| Non-residential burglary | 251 | 1.5 | 1.1 | 1.32 | −3% |
| Possession of weapons | 199 | 1.2 | 1.00 | 1.18 | +1% |
| Rape | 156 | 0.92 | 1.2 | 0.76 | −1% |
| Bicycle theft | 144 | 0.85 | 0.85 | 0.99 | +26% |
| Robbery of business property | 134 | 0.79 | 0.47 | 1.66 | – |
| Trafficking of drugs | 77 | 0.45 | 1.2 | 0.38 | −16% |
| Robbery of personal property | 71 | 0.42 | 0.91 | 0.46 | −13% |
| Arson | 67 | 0.39 | 0.38 | 1.04 | +24% |
| Theft from the person | 42 | 0.25 | 1.8 | 0.14 | −40% |
| Death or serious injury caused by unlawful driving | 5 | 0.03 | 0.03 | 0.84 | −55% |
| Homicide | 1 | 0.01 | 0.01 | 0.73 | 0% |
Recorded crime in Arun since the year ending March 2013
The chart shows police recorded crime per 1,000 residents in each year ending March from 2013 to 2026. Arun's rate was below the England and Wales rate in every one of those 14 years. Changes in how forces record crime move these figures as well as changes in crime (methodology).
| Year ending March | Offences | Per 1,000 | England and Wales per 1,000 |
|---|---|---|---|
| 2026 | 12,003 | 70.6 | 83.2 |
| 2025 | 12,419 | 73.0 | 84.5 |
| 2024 | 11,501 | 67.6 | 86.2 |
| 2023 | 11,556 | 68.0 | 89.2 |
| 2022 | 10,694 | 62.9 | 85.4 |
| 2021 | 10,033 | 59.0 | 74.1 |
| 2020 | 11,255 | 66.2 | 84.7 |
| 2019 | 10,278 | 60.4 | 84.1 |
| 2018 | 9,952 | 58.5 | 78.2 |
| 2017 | 9,187 | 54.0 | 69.1 |
| 2016 | 8,449 | 49.7 | 62.3 |
| 2015 | 7,848 | 46.1 | 57.1 |
| 2014 | 7,311 | 43.0 | 55.9 |
| 2013 | 8,047 | 47.3 | 56.7 |
Districts in the Sussex Police area, the year ending March 2026
Of the 13 districts in the Sussex Police area with a figure for the year ending March 2026, Arun had the 6th highest rate.
| District | Offences | Per 1,000 | Index (E&W = 1.00) |
|---|---|---|---|
| Eastbourne | 11,505 | 110.4 | 1.33 |
| Hastings | 10,035 | 110.0 | 1.32 |
| Crawley | 13,538 | 109.2 | 1.31 |
| Brighton and Hove | 28,335 | 99.8 | 1.20 |
| Worthing | 9,138 | 80.3 | 0.96 |
| Arun | 12,003 | 70.6 | 0.85 |
| Chichester | 7,799 | 60.5 | 0.73 |
| Rother | 5,527 | 57.5 | 0.69 |
| Lewes | 5,649 | 55.2 | 0.66 |
| Adur | 3,580 | 55.2 | 0.66 |
| Mid Sussex | 7,280 | 45.0 | 0.54 |
| Horsham | 6,729 | 44.4 | 0.53 |
| Wealden | 6,852 | 41.1 | 0.49 |
Source: Home Office police recorded crime and outcomes open data tables (released 23 July 2026), gov.uk, Open Government Licence v3.0. Financial years, excluding fraud; how they differ from the street-level figures: methodology.
3 of the 8 nearest districts have a higher crime rate than Arun; the highest is Brighton and Hove district (125.1 per 1,000) and the lowest East Hampshire (47.3).
| District | Crimes | Per 1,000 | Rate vs Arun |
|---|---|---|---|
| Chichester | 10,452 | 81.1 | -9% |
| Worthing | 11,569 | 101.6 | +14% |
| Adur | 4,575 | 70.5 | -21% |
| Havant | 11,156 | 87.9 | -1% |
| Horsham | 8,635 | 57.0 | -36% |
| Brighton and Hove | 35,519 | 125.1 | +41% |
| Portsmouth | 26,789 | 125.0 | +41% |
| East Hampshire | 6,149 | 47.3 | -47% |
Of the 32 areas within Arun, Hotham had the highest crime rate (223.6 per 1,000) and East Preston the lowest (25.8), 9 times apart.
| Area | Type | Population | Crimes | Per 1,000 |
|---|---|---|---|---|
| Hotham | Neighbourhood | 6,423 | 1,436 | 223.6 |
| River | Neighbourhood | 9,166 | 1,772 | 193.3 |
| Marine | Neighbourhood | 8,020 | 1,462 | 182.3 |
| Arundel | Town | 1,478 | 230 | 155.6 |
| Orchard | Neighbourhood | 6,749 | 895 | 132.6 |
| Littlehampton | Town | 18,642 | 2,308 | 123.8 |
| Pevensey | Neighbourhood | 4,762 | 545 | 114.4 |
| Rustington East | Neighbourhood | 5,320 | 600 | 112.8 |
| Wick (Arun) | Town | 12,203 | 1,262 | 103.4 |
| Bognor Regis | Town | 68,862 | 7,025 | 102.0 |
| Yapton | Town | 7,561 | 765 | 101.2 |
| Bersted | Neighbourhood | 11,291 | 1,137 | 100.7 |
| Courtwick with Toddington | Neighbourhood | 12,690 | 1,224 | 96.5 |
| Arundel & Walberton | Neighbourhood | 7,652 | 599 | 78.3 |
| Felpham West | Neighbourhood | 7,014 | 488 | 69.6 |
| Pagham | Town | 1,562 | 107 | 68.5 |
| Barnham | Neighbourhood | 11,459 | 747 | 65.2 |
| Beach | Neighbourhood | 4,638 | 298 | 64.3 |
| Barnham (Arun) | Town | 9,236 | 572 | 61.9 |
| Pagham | Neighbourhood | 6,653 | 400 | 60.1 |
| Ferring | Neighbourhood | 4,815 | 276 | 57.3 |
| Rustington | Town | 35,425 | 1,993 | 56.3 |
| Brookfield | Neighbourhood | 6,486 | 363 | 56.0 |
| Angmering & Findon | Neighbourhood | 12,212 | 669 | 54.8 |
| Rustington West | Neighbourhood | 8,210 | 400 | 48.7 |
| Aldwick East | Neighbourhood | 4,981 | 222 | 44.6 |
| Aldwick West | Neighbourhood | 6,497 | 287 | 44.2 |
| Middleton-on-Sea | Neighbourhood | 4,882 | 175 | 35.8 |
| Walberton | Town | 1,979 | 70 | 35.4 |
| Felpham East | Neighbourhood | 5,244 | 180 | 34.3 |
| Findon | Town | 1,300 | 40 | 30.8 |
| East Preston | Neighbourhood | 7,339 | 189 | 25.8 |
The 10 locations below account for 21% of the crime recorded in Arun over the 12 months to August 2026; the most were recorded at “Supermarket” (1,092).
| Location | Crimes |
|---|---|
| On or near Supermarket | 1,092 |
| On or near Parking Area | 614 |
| On or near Petrol Station | 324 |
| On or near High Street | 272 |
| On or near Station Road | 191 |
| On or near Oxford Street | 189 |
| On or near Sussex Street | 146 |
| On or near Kingsmead | 136 |
| On or near Shopping Area | 127 |
| On or near Sports/Recreation Area | 123 |
Of the 11,996 crimes in Arun with a recorded outcome, 44% ended with the investigation complete and no suspect identified, against 35% across England and Wales; 5.0% were awaiting a court outcome (England and Wales: 5.2%). The 3,133 anti-social behaviour reports have no outcome and are left out.
| Outcome | Crimes | Share | England and Wales |
|---|---|---|---|
| Investigation complete; no suspect identified | 5,283 | 44.0% | 35.3% |
| Unable to prosecute suspect | 3,806 | 31.7% | 34.5% |
| Under investigation | 1,129 | 9.4% | 11.5% |
| Awaiting court outcome | 595 | 5.0% | 5.2% |
| Status update unavailable | 373 | 3.1% | 4.7% |
| Local resolution | 322 | 2.7% | 3.1% |
| Court result unavailable | 210 | 1.8% | 2.5% |
| Action to be taken by another organisation | 119 | 1.0% | 1.3% |
| Offender given a caution | 70 | 0.6% | 0.6% |
| Formal action is not in the public interest | 41 | 0.3% | 0.3% |
| Further action is not in the public interest | 24 | 0.2% | 0.3% |
| Further investigation is not in the public interest | 23 | 0.2% | 0.5% |
Arun has an estimated population of 170,064 (ONS, mid-2024). Compared with England and Wales it has an older population (29%, against 19%), more retired residents (32%, against 22%) and less social housing (9.3%, against 17.1%). On the England IoD 2025, the small areas (LSOAs) that make up Arun average decile 5.6 (1 = most deprived), close to the middle.
| Measure | Arun | England and Wales |
|---|---|---|
| Aged 0 to 15 | 15.2% | 18.3% |
| Aged 65 and over | 29.0% | 18.9% |
| Residents 16+ in work | 52.5% | 57.2% |
| Residents 16+ unemployed | 2.6% | 3.4% |
| Residents 16+ retired | 31.9% | 21.6% |
| Residents 16+ who are students | 4.8% | 7.9% |
| Residents 16+ with Level 4 qualifications or above (degree, HND and similar) | 26.4% | 33.8% |
| Residents 16+ with no qualifications | 19.7% | 18.2% |
| Households with no car or van | 16.9% | 23.3% |
| Homes owned outright or with a mortgage | 72.4% | 62.5% |
| Social rented homes | 9.3% | 17.1% |
| Private rented homes | 18.2% | 20.3% |
| Average deprivation decile (1 = most deprived, 10 = least) | 5.6 | 5.5 (England) |
| Residents in the most deprived 10% of areas | 5.4% | 10.1% (England) |
1,102 fly-tipping incidents were recorded in Arun in 2024/25 (6.5 per 1,000 residents, against 21.1 across the councils in England that count all incidents), according to the council's return to Defra. Fly-tipping is not in the police figures on this page: fly-tipping in Arun has the council's figures by place, type of waste and size, and its enforcement actions and fines.
Is Arun a safe place to live?
Arun recorded 89.0 crimes per 1,000 residents in the 12 months to August 2026, close to the England and Wales rate of 96.7, and ranks 134th of the 302 districts on this site by crime rate (1 = highest).
What is the most common crime in Arun?
Violence and sexual offences was the most common category, with 4,922 reports in the 12 months to August 2026, followed by anti-social behaviour (3,133).
Is crime in Arun going up or down?
Recorded crime in Arun was up 3% on the year before: 15,129 crimes in the 12 months to August 2026 against 14,686 in the previous 12 months.
What is the population of Arun?
About 170,064 people (ONS mid-2024 estimate), 29% of them aged 65 or over (England and Wales: 19%).
Which police force covers Arun?
Arun is policed by Sussex.
How many crimes did the police record in Arun in the year ending March 2026?
12,003 crimes, excluding fraud, in the Home Office's police recorded crime statistics: 70.6 per 1,000 residents, against 83.2 across England and Wales. In the year ending March 2025 the figure was 12,419.
Which offences are more common in Arun than across England and Wales?
Relative to the national rate, the most over-represented categories in the year ending March 2026 were robbery of business property (134 offences, 1.7 times the England and Wales rate) and non-residential burglary (251 offences, 1.3 times the England and Wales rate).
Police-recorded crime from data.police.uk (September 2017 to August 2026), ONS population estimates and Census 2021. Definitions and limitations: methodology.