Crime in Cheshire East: statistics, rates and trends
28,139 crimes were recorded in Cheshire East in the 12 months to August 2026, 66.8 per 1,000 residents. That is lower than the England and Wales rate of 96.7, and up 3% on the year before.
Table of Contents
- Crime map
- Crime in Cheshire East at a glance
- Crime trends in Cheshire East
- Types of crime in Cheshire East
- Home Office recorded crime in Cheshire East
- Cheshire East compared with nearby districts
- Areas within Cheshire East
- Streets with the most crime in Cheshire East
- What happened after crimes were reported in Cheshire East
- Demographics of Cheshire East
- Fly-tipping in Cheshire East
- Questions about crime in Cheshire East
- About this data
Crime map
Violence and sexual offences (12,394), public order (3,089) and anti-social behaviour (2,627) made up 64% of all recorded crime. Its crime rate ranks 232nd of the 302 districts covered by this site (1 = highest), in the lowest quarter.
| Measure | Cheshire East | North West | England and Wales |
|---|---|---|---|
| Crimes, the 12 months to August 2026 | 28,139 | 439,611 | 5,618,064 |
| Crimes per 1,000 residents | 66.8 | 93.0 | 96.7 |
| Change on previous 12 months | +3% | -3% | -1% |
| Population | 421,298 | 4,727,750 | 58,127,638 |
Recorded crime in Cheshire East peaked in the year to August 2020 (34,990 crimes) and was lowest in the year to August 2023 (24,439). Between the years to August 2018 and 2026 it fell 19%, while across England and Wales it fell 4%.
| Period | Crimes | Per 1,000 | England and Wales per 1,000 |
|---|---|---|---|
| Year to August 2026 | 28,139 | 66.8 | 96.7 |
| Year to August 2025 | 27,379 | 65.0 | 97.2 |
| Year to August 2024 | 28,009 | 66.5 | 97.9 |
| Year to August 2023 | 24,439 | 58.0 | n/a |
| Year to August 2022 | 26,546 | 63.0 | 102.0 |
| Year to August 2021 | 33,999 | 80.7 | 101.4 |
| Year to August 2020 | 34,990 | 83.1 | 102.7 |
| Year to August 2019 | 34,872 | 82.8 | 101.7 |
| Year to August 2018 | 34,773 | 82.5 | 100.8 |
Month by month
| Month | Crimes |
|---|---|
| August 2026 | 2,446 |
| July 2026 | 2,754 |
| June 2026 | 2,712 |
| May 2026 | 2,567 |
| April 2026 | 2,417 |
| March 2026 | 2,374 |
| February 2026 | 2,056 |
| January 2026 | 2,239 |
| December 2025 | 2,145 |
| November 2025 | 2,122 |
| October 2025 | 2,193 |
| September 2025 | 2,114 |
No category with at least 20 crimes was notably above the England and Wales rate, and theft from the person (90% below) and robbery (76% below) were well below it. On the year before, drugs rose from 1,055 to 1,383.
| Crime type | Crimes | Per 1,000 | England and Wales per 1,000 | Change on year |
|---|---|---|---|---|
| Violence and sexual offences | 12,394 | 29.4 | 34.2 | 0% |
| Public order | 3,089 | 7.3 | 6.7 | +7% |
| Anti-social behaviour | 2,627 | 6.2 | 15.4 | +6% |
| Shoplifting | 2,045 | 4.9 | 8.5 | +6% |
| Criminal damage and arson | 1,803 | 4.3 | 6.7 | -2% |
| Other theft | 1,736 | 4.1 | 6.4 | +5% |
| Drugs | 1,383 | 3.3 | 3.3 | +31% |
| Burglary | 902 | 2.1 | 3.6 | -5% |
| Vehicle crime | 733 | 1.7 | 5.0 | +1% |
| Other crime | 713 | 1.7 | 2.1 | -6% |
| Possession of weapons | 304 | 0.7 | 1.0 | +9% |
| Bicycle theft | 206 | 0.5 | 0.8 | +11% |
| Robbery | 136 | 0.3 | 1.4 | +8% |
| Theft from the person | 68 | 0.2 | 1.7 | -3% |
What each category covers: crime categories.
25,693 crimes, excluding fraud, were recorded by the police in Cheshire East in the year ending March 2026, according to the Home Office's police recorded crime statistics. That is 61.0 per 1,000 residents, lower than the England and Wales rate of 83.2. The total was almost unchanged on the year ending March 2025 (25,570), against a fall of 2% across England and Wales. Among the 272 districts of England and Wales with a figure for that year, Cheshire East had the 87th 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).
Offences recorded in Cheshire East, the year ending March 2026
The largest category was stalking and harassment, with 4,370 offences (17% of the total). No category with at least 20 offences had a rate a quarter or more above the England and Wales rate. Rates were lowest relative to the national rate for theft from the person (0.08 times), robbery of personal property (0.22 times) and robbery of business property (0.25 times).
The largest rises on the year were in trafficking of drugs (from 134 to 338) and possession of drugs (+39%). The largest falls were in robbery of personal property (−28%) and bicycle theft (−19%). 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 |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| Stalking and harassment | 4,370 | 10.4 | 10.1 | 1.03 | −4% |
| Violence without injury | 3,958 | 9.4 | 13.2 | 0.71 | −1% |
| Public order offences | 3,091 | 7.3 | 7.0 | 1.05 | +9% |
| Violence with injury | 2,917 | 6.9 | 8.1 | 0.85 | +0% |
| Shoplifting | 1,934 | 4.6 | 8.1 | 0.57 | – |
| Criminal damage | 1,779 | 4.2 | 6.8 | 0.62 | −2% |
| Other theft offences | 1,717 | 4.1 | 6.5 | 0.62 | −3% |
| Possession of drugs | 1,081 | 2.6 | 2.5 | 1.03 | +39% |
| Other sexual offences | 900 | 2.1 | 2.3 | 0.94 | +7% |
| Miscellaneous crimes against society | 749 | 1.8 | 2.1 | 0.85 | +6% |
| Vehicle offences | 722 | 1.7 | 5.0 | 0.34 | −6% |
| Residential burglary | 681 | 1.6 | 2.5 | 0.65 | −11% |
| Rape | 463 | 1.1 | 1.2 | 0.91 | +0% |
| Trafficking of drugs | 338 | 0.80 | 1.2 | 0.68 | +152% |
| Possession of weapons | 318 | 0.75 | 1.00 | 0.76 | +30% |
| Non-residential burglary | 218 | 0.52 | 1.1 | 0.46 | −6% |
| Bicycle theft | 175 | 0.42 | 0.85 | 0.49 | −19% |
| Robbery of personal property | 86 | 0.20 | 0.91 | 0.22 | −28% |
| Arson | 64 | 0.15 | 0.38 | 0.40 | −2% |
| Theft from the person | 63 | 0.15 | 1.8 | 0.08 | −16% |
| Robbery of business property | 50 | 0.12 | 0.47 | 0.25 | – |
| Death or serious injury caused by unlawful driving | 17 | 0.04 | 0.03 | 1.16 | −26% |
| Homicide | 2 | <0.01 | 0.01 | 0.59 | – |
Recorded crime in Cheshire East since the year ending March 2019
The chart shows police recorded crime per 1,000 residents in each year ending March from 2019 to 2026. Cheshire East's rate was below the England and Wales rate in every one of those 8 years. The series starts in the year ending March 2019 because the share of crimes in the Cheshire Police area not assigned to a district moved from 7.2% in the year ending March 2018 to 0.3% in the year ending March 2019, which changes district totals without any change in crime.
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 | 25,693 | 61.0 | 83.2 |
| 2025 | 25,570 | 60.7 | 84.5 |
| 2024 | 25,453 | 60.4 | 86.2 |
| 2023 | 27,745 | 65.9 | 89.2 |
| 2022 | 29,153 | 69.2 | 85.4 |
| 2021 | 27,197 | 64.6 | 74.1 |
| 2020 | 30,977 | 73.5 | 84.7 |
| 2019 | 30,644 | 72.7 | 84.1 |
Districts in the Cheshire Police area, the year ending March 2026
Of the 4 districts in the Cheshire Police area with a figure for the year ending March 2026, Cheshire East had the lowest rate.
| District | Offences | Per 1,000 | Index (E&W = 1.00) |
|---|---|---|---|
| Halton | 11,141 | 84.7 | 1.02 |
| Warrington | 15,156 | 70.4 | 0.85 |
| Cheshire West and Chester | 24,822 | 66.8 | 0.80 |
| Cheshire East | 25,693 | 61.0 | 0.73 |
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.
Every one of the 8 nearest districts has a higher crime rate than Cheshire East.
| District | Crimes | Per 1,000 | Rate vs Cheshire East |
|---|---|---|---|
| Newcastle-under-Lyme | 11,323 | 88.7 | +33% |
| Stoke-on-Trent | 37,774 | 139.7 | +109% |
| Staffordshire Moorlands | 6,544 | 67.7 | +1% |
| Warrington | 16,060 | 74.6 | +12% |
| Cheshire West and Chester | 27,265 | 73.4 | +10% |
| High Peak | 6,650 | 72.3 | +8% |
| Halton | 12,012 | 91.3 | +37% |
| St. Helens | 17,904 | 94.8 | +42% |
Of the 83 areas within Cheshire East, Macclesfield Central had the highest crime rate (186.7 per 1,000) and High Legh the lowest (15.5), 12 times apart.
| Area | Type | Population | Crimes | Per 1,000 |
|---|---|---|---|---|
| Macclesfield Central | Neighbourhood | 7,873 | 1,470 | 186.7 |
| Crewe Central | Neighbourhood | 8,403 | 1,427 | 169.8 |
| Crewe East | Neighbourhood | 17,702 | 2,569 | 145.1 |
| Macclesfield Hurdsfield | Neighbourhood | 4,575 | 567 | 123.9 |
| Crewe South | Neighbourhood | 13,150 | 1,463 | 111.3 |
| Crewe West | Neighbourhood | 10,961 | 1,165 | 106.3 |
| Crewe | Town | 76,376 | 8,050 | 105.4 |
| Nantwich North and West | Neighbourhood | 9,347 | 836 | 89.4 |
| Handforth | Neighbourhood | 9,533 | 839 | 88.0 |
| Macclesfield | Town | 55,199 | 4,754 | 86.1 |
| Macclesfield East | Neighbourhood | 5,894 | 507 | 86.0 |
| Sandbach Heath and East | Neighbourhood | 5,995 | 490 | 81.7 |
| Congleton West | Neighbourhood | 16,511 | 1,318 | 79.8 |
| Nantwich | Town | 20,864 | 1,655 | 79.3 |
| Crewe St Barnabas | Neighbourhood | 3,955 | 309 | 78.1 |
| Alderley Edge | Town | 3,368 | 263 | 78.1 |
| Macclesfield South | Neighbourhood | 9,855 | 761 | 77.2 |
| Middlewich | Town | 14,613 | 1,122 | 76.8 |
| Leighton | Neighbourhood | 6,971 | 524 | 75.2 |
| Crewe North | Neighbourhood | 5,744 | 423 | 73.6 |
| Congleton | Town | 33,235 | 2,345 | 70.6 |
| Wilmslow Lacey Green | Neighbourhood | 5,172 | 364 | 70.4 |
| Sandbach | Town | 13,197 | 899 | 68.1 |
| Congleton East | Neighbourhood | 13,921 | 928 | 66.7 |
| Macclesfield West and Ivy | Neighbourhood | 8,371 | 556 | 66.4 |
| Broken Cross and Upton | Neighbourhood | 9,393 | 620 | 66.0 |
| Nantwich South and Stapeley | Neighbourhood | 9,784 | 637 | 65.1 |
| High Legh | Neighbourhood | 5,726 | 351 | 61.3 |
| Alderley Edge | Neighbourhood | 5,118 | 313 | 61.2 |
| Weston (Cheshire East) | Town | 1,204 | 72 | 59.8 |
| Wilmslow West and Chorley | Neighbourhood | 10,960 | 633 | 57.8 |
| Alsager | Town | 16,173 | 928 | 57.4 |
| Alsager | Neighbourhood | 14,741 | 827 | 56.1 |
| Sandbach Elworth | Neighbourhood | 7,721 | 428 | 55.4 |
| Wrenbury-cum-Frith | Town | 2,192 | 109 | 49.7 |
| Wilmslow | Town | 26,429 | 1,266 | 47.9 |
| Odd Rode | Neighbourhood | 8,616 | 411 | 47.7 |
| Knutsford | Town | 13,733 | 652 | 47.5 |
| Wistaston | Neighbourhood | 9,775 | 444 | 45.4 |
| Brereton Rural | Neighbourhood | 8,318 | 371 | 44.6 |
| Sandbach Town | Neighbourhood | 5,370 | 236 | 43.9 |
| Bunbury | Neighbourhood | 6,010 | 261 | 43.4 |
| Wheelock | Town | 2,164 | 92 | 42.5 |
| Shavington | Town | 6,568 | 279 | 42.5 |
| Haslington | Neighbourhood | 9,658 | 405 | 41.9 |
| Wrenbury | Neighbourhood | 7,640 | 316 | 41.4 |
| Rode Heath | Town | 1,316 | 53 | 40.3 |
| Poynton East and Pott Shrigley | Neighbourhood | 6,756 | 269 | 39.8 |
| Bollington | Town | 7,986 | 307 | 38.4 |
| Rainow | Town | 2,540 | 96 | 37.8 |
| Scholar Green | Town | 1,539 | 58 | 37.7 |
| Elworth | Town | 7,999 | 301 | 37.6 |
| Willaston and Rope | Neighbourhood | 6,459 | 240 | 37.2 |
| Sutton | Neighbourhood | 4,918 | 179 | 36.4 |
| Poynton | Town | 13,486 | 484 | 35.9 |
| Poynton West and Adlington | Neighbourhood | 9,815 | 343 | 34.9 |
| Pickmere | Town | 3,406 | 119 | 34.9 |
| Disley | Town | 4,952 | 167 | 33.7 |
| Goostrey | Town | 1,641 | 55 | 33.5 |
| Haslington | Town | 4,626 | 155 | 33.5 |
| Prestbury (Cheshire East) | Town | 3,424 | 113 | 33.0 |
| Prestbury | Neighbourhood | 3,424 | 113 | 33.0 |
| Gawsworth | Neighbourhood | 5,706 | 187 | 32.8 |
| Sandbach Ettiley Heath and Wheelock | Neighbourhood | 4,274 | 138 | 32.3 |
| Over Peover | Town | 2,453 | 79 | 32.2 |
| Winterley | Town | 2,396 | 77 | 32.1 |
| Chelford | Neighbourhood | 6,114 | 195 | 31.9 |
| Higher Poynton | Town | 1,223 | 39 | 31.9 |
| Audlem | Neighbourhood | 4,580 | 146 | 31.9 |
| Gawsworth | Town | 2,332 | 74 | 31.7 |
| Willaston (Cheshire East) | Town | 2,742 | 82 | 29.9 |
| Macclesfield Tytherington | Neighbourhood | 9,238 | 273 | 29.6 |
| Holmes Chapel | Town | 6,930 | 203 | 29.3 |
| Dane Valley | Neighbourhood | 10,887 | 305 | 28.0 |
| Wybunbury | Town | 1,737 | 48 | 27.6 |
| Wybunbury | Neighbourhood | 5,369 | 146 | 27.2 |
| Bunbury | Town | 2,421 | 62 | 25.6 |
| Wilmslow East | Neighbourhood | 3,389 | 82 | 24.2 |
| Wilmslow Dean Row | Neighbourhood | 6,584 | 158 | 24.0 |
| Mobberley | Neighbourhood | 3,170 | 69 | 21.8 |
| Chelford | Town | 1,720 | 33 | 19.2 |
| Mobberley | Town | 1,771 | 30 | 16.9 |
| High Legh | Town | 1,095 | 17 | 15.5 |
The 10 locations below account for 17% of the crime recorded in Cheshire East over the 12 months to August 2026; the most were recorded at “Parking Area” (1,751).
| Location | Crimes |
|---|---|
| On or near Parking Area | 1,751 |
| On or near Supermarket | 1,527 |
| On or near Hospital | 303 |
| On or near Petrol Station | 275 |
| On or near Sports/Recreation Area | 215 |
| On or near Shopping Area | 187 |
| On or near White Avenue | 176 |
| On or near Newdigate Street | 161 |
| On or near Mill Street | 157 |
| On or near Wood Street | 136 |
Of the 25,512 crimes in Cheshire East with a recorded outcome, 25% ended with the investigation complete and no suspect identified, against 35% across England and Wales; 9.1% were awaiting a court outcome (England and Wales: 5.2%). The 2,627 anti-social behaviour reports have no outcome and are left out.
| Outcome | Crimes | Share | England and Wales |
|---|---|---|---|
| Unable to prosecute suspect | 10,104 | 39.6% | 34.5% |
| Investigation complete; no suspect identified | 6,270 | 24.6% | 35.3% |
| Under investigation | 2,658 | 10.4% | 11.5% |
| Awaiting court outcome | 2,312 | 9.1% | 5.2% |
| Local resolution | 1,603 | 6.3% | 3.1% |
| Court result unavailable | 1,200 | 4.7% | 2.5% |
| Action to be taken by another organisation | 568 | 2.2% | 1.3% |
| Status update unavailable | 548 | 2.1% | 4.7% |
| Offender given a caution | 101 | 0.4% | 0.6% |
| Further action is not in the public interest | 60 | 0.2% | 0.3% |
| Further investigation is not in the public interest | 58 | 0.2% | 0.5% |
| Formal action is not in the public interest | 28 | 0.1% | 0.3% |
Cheshire East has an estimated population of 421,298 (ONS, mid-2024). Compared with England and Wales it has fewer households without a car (15%, against 23%), fewer students (5.0%, against 7.9%) and less social housing (12%, against 17%). On the England IoD 2025, the small areas (LSOAs) that make up Cheshire East average decile 7.1 (1 = most deprived), less deprived than average.
| Measure | Cheshire East | England and Wales |
|---|---|---|
| Aged 0 to 15 | 17.4% | 18.3% |
| Aged 65 and over | 22.5% | 18.9% |
| Residents 16+ in work | 58.4% | 57.2% |
| Residents 16+ unemployed | 2.4% | 3.4% |
| Residents 16+ retired | 26.6% | 21.6% |
| Residents 16+ who are students | 5.0% | 7.9% |
| Residents 16+ with Level 4 qualifications or above (degree, HND and similar) | 37.6% | 33.8% |
| Residents 16+ with no qualifications | 15.0% | 18.2% |
| Households with no car or van | 14.5% | 23.3% |
| Homes owned outright or with a mortgage | 72.9% | 62.5% |
| Social rented homes | 11.6% | 17.1% |
| Private rented homes | 15.5% | 20.3% |
| Average deprivation decile (1 = most deprived, 10 = least) | 7.1 | 5.5 (England) |
| Residents in the most deprived 10% of areas | 2.6% | 10.1% (England) |
3,784 fly-tipping incidents were recorded in Cheshire East in 2024/25 (9.0 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 Cheshire East has the council's figures by place, type of waste and size, and its enforcement actions and fines.
Is Cheshire East a safe place to live?
Cheshire East recorded 66.8 crimes per 1,000 residents in the 12 months to August 2026, lower than the England and Wales rate of 96.7, and ranks 232nd of the 302 districts on this site by crime rate (1 = highest).
What is the most common crime in Cheshire East?
Violence and sexual offences was the most common category, with 12,394 reports in the 12 months to August 2026, followed by public order (3,089).
Is crime in Cheshire East going up or down?
Recorded crime in Cheshire East was up 3% on the year before: 28,139 crimes in the 12 months to August 2026 against 27,379 in the previous 12 months.
What is the population of Cheshire East?
About 421,298 people (ONS mid-2024 estimate), 23% of them aged 65 or over (England and Wales: 19%).
Which police force covers Cheshire East?
Cheshire East is policed by Cheshire.
How many crimes did the police record in Cheshire East in the year ending March 2026?
25,693 crimes, excluding fraud, in the Home Office's police recorded crime statistics: 61.0 per 1,000 residents, against 83.2 across England and Wales. In the year ending March 2025 the figure was 25,570.
Which offences are more common in Cheshire East than across England and Wales?
None: no category with at least 20 offences had a rate a quarter or more above the England and Wales rate in the year ending March 2026. The largest category was stalking and harassment (4,370).
Police-recorded crime from data.police.uk (September 2017 to August 2026), ONS population estimates and Census 2021. Definitions and limitations: methodology.