Crime in Shropshire: statistics, rates and trends
19,214 crimes were recorded in Shropshire in the 12 months to August 2026, 57.8 per 1,000 residents. That is lower than the England and Wales rate of 96.7, and down 5% on the year before.
Table of Contents
- Crime map
- Crime in Shropshire at a glance
- Crime trends in Shropshire
- Types of crime in Shropshire
- Home Office recorded crime in Shropshire
- Shropshire compared with nearby districts
- Areas within Shropshire
- Streets with the most crime in Shropshire
- What happened after crimes were reported in Shropshire
- Demographics of Shropshire
- Fly-tipping in Shropshire
- Questions about crime in Shropshire
- About this data
Crime map
Violence and sexual offences (8,465), anti-social behaviour (2,553) and criminal damage and arson (1,640) made up 66% of all recorded crime. Its crime rate ranks 272nd of the 302 districts covered by this site (1 = highest), in the lowest tenth.
| Measure | Shropshire | West Midlands | England and Wales |
|---|---|---|---|
| Crimes, the 12 months to August 2026 | 19,214 | 579,648 | 5,618,064 |
| Crimes per 1,000 residents | 57.8 | 93.7 | 96.7 |
| Change on previous 12 months | -5% | 0% | -1% |
| Population | 332,455 | 6,187,204 | 58,127,638 |
The year to August 2026 had the least recorded crime in Shropshire of any year here (19,214 crimes). Between the years to August 2018 and 2026 it fell 27%, while across England and Wales it fell 4%.
| Period | Crimes | Per 1,000 | England and Wales per 1,000 |
|---|---|---|---|
| Year to August 2026 | 19,214 | 57.8 | 96.7 |
| Year to August 2025 | 20,275 | 61.0 | 97.2 |
| Year to August 2024 | 20,786 | 62.5 | 97.9 |
| Year to August 2023 | 23,637 | 71.1 | n/a |
| Year to August 2022 | 23,917 | 71.9 | 102.0 |
| Year to August 2021 | 25,590 | 77.0 | 101.4 |
| Year to August 2020 | 25,932 | 78.0 | 102.7 |
| Year to August 2019 | 26,383 | 79.4 | 101.7 |
| Year to August 2018 | 26,261 | 79.0 | 100.8 |
Month by month
| Month | Crimes |
|---|---|
| August 2026 | 1,763 |
| July 2026 | 1,859 |
| June 2026 | 1,754 |
| May 2026 | 1,556 |
| April 2026 | 1,452 |
| March 2026 | 1,651 |
| February 2026 | 1,483 |
| January 2026 | 1,426 |
| December 2025 | 1,551 |
| November 2025 | 1,595 |
| October 2025 | 1,597 |
| September 2025 | 1,527 |
No category with at least 20 crimes was notably above the England and Wales rate, and theft from the person (88% below) and robbery (73% below) were well below it. On the year before, drugs rose from 429 to 511, while bicycle theft fell from 211 to 116 and vehicle crime fell from 627 to 492.
| Crime type | Crimes | Per 1,000 | England and Wales per 1,000 | Change on year |
|---|---|---|---|---|
| Violence and sexual offences | 8,465 | 25.5 | 34.2 | +5% |
| Anti-social behaviour | 2,553 | 7.7 | 15.4 | -21% |
| Criminal damage and arson | 1,640 | 4.9 | 6.7 | -5% |
| Shoplifting | 1,352 | 4.1 | 8.5 | -17% |
| Other theft | 1,307 | 3.9 | 6.4 | -3% |
| Public order | 1,122 | 3.4 | 6.7 | -18% |
| Burglary | 785 | 2.4 | 3.6 | +4% |
| Drugs | 511 | 1.5 | 3.3 | +19% |
| Vehicle crime | 492 | 1.5 | 5.0 | -22% |
| Other crime | 473 | 1.4 | 2.1 | +1% |
| Possession of weapons | 208 | 0.6 | 1.0 | +12% |
| Robbery | 121 | 0.4 | 1.4 | +14% |
| Bicycle theft | 116 | 0.3 | 0.8 | -45% |
| Theft from the person | 69 | 0.2 | 1.7 | -16% |
What each category covers: crime categories.
15,813 crimes, excluding fraud, were recorded by the police in Shropshire in the year ending March 2026, according to the Home Office's police recorded crime statistics. That is 47.6 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 (16,295), against a fall of 2% across England and Wales. Among the 272 districts of England and Wales with a figure for that year, Shropshire had the 27th 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 Shropshire, the year ending March 2026
The largest category was violence without injury, with 2,518 offences (16% of the total). Relative to England and Wales, rates were highest for death or serious injury caused by unlawful driving (2.4 times the national 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 vehicle offences (0.31 times).
The largest rises on the year were in possession of drugs (+46%) and miscellaneous crimes against society (+24%). The largest falls were in theft from the person (−32%) 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 | 2,518 | 7.6 | 13.2 | 0.57 | +1% |
| Stalking and harassment | 2,494 | 7.5 | 10.1 | 0.74 | +13% |
| Violence with injury | 1,918 | 5.8 | 8.1 | 0.71 | +1% |
| Criminal damage | 1,522 | 4.6 | 6.8 | 0.67 | −3% |
| Shoplifting | 1,375 | 4.1 | 8.1 | 0.51 | – |
| Other theft offences | 1,217 | 3.7 | 6.5 | 0.56 | −13% |
| Public order offences | 1,139 | 3.4 | 7.0 | 0.49 | −14% |
| Other sexual offences | 600 | 1.8 | 2.3 | 0.79 | +14% |
| Vehicle offences | 515 | 1.5 | 5.0 | 0.31 | −21% |
| Residential burglary | 472 | 1.4 | 2.5 | 0.57 | −10% |
| Miscellaneous crimes against society | 457 | 1.4 | 2.1 | 0.66 | +24% |
| Possession of drugs | 266 | 0.80 | 2.5 | 0.32 | +46% |
| Rape | 266 | 0.80 | 1.2 | 0.66 | +17% |
| Non-residential burglary | 240 | 0.72 | 1.1 | 0.65 | −8% |
| Trafficking of drugs | 208 | 0.63 | 1.2 | 0.53 | +2% |
| Possession of weapons | 172 | 0.52 | 1.00 | 0.52 | −13% |
| Bicycle theft | 157 | 0.47 | 0.85 | 0.55 | −2% |
| Arson | 73 | 0.22 | 0.38 | 0.58 | +9% |
| Robbery of personal property | 66 | 0.20 | 0.91 | 0.22 | −11% |
| Robbery of business property | 58 | 0.17 | 0.47 | 0.37 | – |
| Theft from the person | 48 | 0.14 | 1.8 | 0.08 | −32% |
| Death or serious injury caused by unlawful driving | 28 | 0.08 | 0.03 | 2.42 | −12% |
| Homicide | 4 | 0.01 | 0.01 | 1.50 | +300% |
Recorded crime in Shropshire since the year ending March 2017
The chart shows police recorded crime per 1,000 residents in each year ending March from 2017 to 2026. Shropshire's rate was below the England and Wales rate in every one of those 10 years. The series starts in the year ending March 2017 because the share of crimes in the West Mercia Police area not assigned to a district moved from 4.8% in the year ending March 2016 to 0.0% in the year ending March 2017, 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 | 15,813 | 47.6 | 83.2 |
| 2025 | 16,295 | 49.0 | 84.5 |
| 2024 | 18,040 | 54.3 | 86.2 |
| 2023 | 18,953 | 57.0 | 89.2 |
| 2022 | 17,150 | 51.6 | 85.4 |
| 2021 | 14,924 | 44.9 | 74.1 |
| 2020 | 17,504 | 52.7 | 84.7 |
| 2019 | 18,237 | 54.9 | 84.1 |
| 2018 | 16,684 | 50.2 | 78.2 |
| 2017 | 15,002 | 45.1 | 69.1 |
Districts in the West Mercia Police area, the year ending March 2026
Of the 3 districts in the West Mercia Police area with a figure for the year ending March 2026, Shropshire had the lowest rate. Bromsgrove, Malvern Hills, Redditch, Worcester, Wychavon and Wyre Forest are not in the table because the Home Office publishes each of them jointly with a neighbouring district, as one community safety partnership.
| District | Offences | Per 1,000 | Index (E&W = 1.00) |
|---|---|---|---|
| Telford and Wrekin | 14,301 | 73.0 | 0.88 |
| Herefordshire, County of | 9,620 | 50.4 | 0.61 |
| Shropshire | 15,813 | 47.6 | 0.57 |
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 Shropshire.
| District | Crimes | Per 1,000 | Rate vs Shropshire |
|---|---|---|---|
| Telford and Wrekin | 17,406 | 88.8 | +54% |
| South Staffordshire | 6,804 | 59.5 | +3% |
| Stafford | 11,641 | 82.2 | +42% |
| Wolverhampton | 27,937 | 99.3 | +72% |
| Wrexham | 13,929 | 100.8 | +74% |
| Dudley | 26,676 | 80.4 | +39% |
| Wyre Forest | 8,977 | 86.4 | +49% |
| Newcastle-under-Lyme | 11,323 | 88.7 | +53% |
Of the 111 areas within Shropshire, Quarry & Coton Hill had the highest crime rate (338.5 per 1,000) and Alveley the lowest (15.6), 22 times apart.
| Area | Type | Population | Crimes | Per 1,000 |
|---|---|---|---|---|
| Quarry & Coton Hill | Neighbourhood | 4,635 | 1,569 | 338.5 |
| Oswestry South | Neighbourhood | 5,142 | 700 | 136.1 |
| Harlescott | Neighbourhood | 3,775 | 500 | 132.5 |
| Meole | Neighbourhood | 3,151 | 356 | 113.0 |
| Ludlow North | Neighbourhood | 3,669 | 388 | 105.8 |
| Bridgnorth Castle | Neighbourhood | 4,292 | 406 | 94.6 |
| Monkmoor | Neighbourhood | 4,148 | 385 | 92.8 |
| Market Drayton East & Rural | Neighbourhood | 5,691 | 517 | 90.8 |
| Oswestry South East | Neighbourhood | 3,685 | 330 | 89.6 |
| Oswestry | Town | 18,166 | 1,495 | 82.3 |
| Whitchurch North | Neighbourhood | 5,286 | 434 | 82.1 |
| Shrewsbury | Town | 78,695 | 6,458 | 82.1 |
| Castlefields & Ditherington | Neighbourhood | 5,655 | 451 | 79.8 |
| Ludlow | Town | 11,127 | 880 | 79.1 |
| Sundorne & Old Heath | Neighbourhood | 5,345 | 410 | 76.7 |
| Ludlow East | Neighbourhood | 3,849 | 294 | 76.4 |
| Battlefield | Neighbourhood | 5,489 | 414 | 75.4 |
| Bridgnorth East | Neighbourhood | 4,698 | 353 | 75.1 |
| Bridgnorth | Town | 11,685 | 875 | 74.9 |
| Craven Arms | Town | 2,870 | 207 | 72.1 |
| Bicton Heath | Neighbourhood | 3,789 | 267 | 70.5 |
| Wem | Town | 6,325 | 444 | 70.2 |
| Whitchurch (Shropshire) | Town | 10,209 | 707 | 69.3 |
| Much Wenlock | Town | 1,644 | 112 | 68.1 |
| Market Drayton | Town | 12,817 | 872 | 68.0 |
| Bishop's Castle | Town | 1,535 | 104 | 67.8 |
| Gobowen | Town | 2,749 | 181 | 65.8 |
| Highley | Town | 3,785 | 242 | 63.9 |
| Shifnal North | Neighbourhood | 4,708 | 295 | 62.7 |
| Oteley & Reabrook | Neighbourhood | 3,210 | 198 | 61.7 |
| Bomere Heath | Town | 2,314 | 142 | 61.4 |
| Hanwood | Town | 1,313 | 80 | 60.9 |
| Dudleston Heath | Town | 1,516 | 89 | 58.7 |
| Wem | Neighbourhood | 9,629 | 565 | 58.7 |
| Selattyn & Gobowen | Neighbourhood | 4,249 | 249 | 58.6 |
| Whitchurch West | Neighbourhood | 3,655 | 213 | 58.3 |
| Underdale | Neighbourhood | 4,500 | 262 | 58.2 |
| Craven Arms | Neighbourhood | 4,277 | 249 | 58.2 |
| Column & Sutton | Neighbourhood | 3,894 | 226 | 58.0 |
| Shifnal | Town | 9,712 | 563 | 58.0 |
| Ellesmere | Town | 5,094 | 295 | 57.9 |
| Ellesmere Urban | Neighbourhood | 5,094 | 295 | 57.9 |
| Bagley | Neighbourhood | 4,623 | 264 | 57.1 |
| Porthill | Neighbourhood | 3,842 | 219 | 57.0 |
| Market Drayton South | Neighbourhood | 4,282 | 241 | 56.3 |
| Pontesbury | Town | 2,008 | 113 | 56.3 |
| Much Wenlock | Neighbourhood | 3,443 | 193 | 56.1 |
| Weston Rhyn | Town | 1,420 | 79 | 55.6 |
| Rea Valley | Neighbourhood | 4,066 | 224 | 55.1 |
| Oswestry North | Neighbourhood | 4,506 | 248 | 55.0 |
| Hodnet | Neighbourhood | 5,944 | 327 | 55.0 |
| Whitchurch South | Neighbourhood | 2,982 | 161 | 54.0 |
| Minsterley | Town | 2,058 | 111 | 53.9 |
| Broseley | Town | 6,047 | 324 | 53.6 |
| Shifnal South | Neighbourhood | 5,004 | 268 | 53.6 |
| Whittington (Shropshire) | Town | 1,666 | 89 | 53.4 |
| Cross Houses | Town | 1,878 | 98 | 52.2 |
| Abbey | Neighbourhood | 6,383 | 331 | 51.9 |
| Tern | Neighbourhood | 5,413 | 280 | 51.7 |
| Copthorne | Neighbourhood | 5,264 | 261 | 49.6 |
| St Martins | Town | 3,304 | 162 | 49.0 |
| Prees | Town | 1,804 | 87 | 48.2 |
| Belle Vue | Neighbourhood | 4,653 | 222 | 47.7 |
| Ludlow South | Neighbourhood | 4,875 | 227 | 46.6 |
| Severn Valley | Neighbourhood | 4,059 | 189 | 46.6 |
| Oswestry North East | Neighbourhood | 4,833 | 217 | 44.9 |
| Whittington | Neighbourhood | 4,512 | 201 | 44.5 |
| St Martin's | Neighbourhood | 9,328 | 409 | 43.8 |
| Albrighton | Neighbourhood | 5,531 | 235 | 42.5 |
| Longden | Neighbourhood | 5,607 | 226 | 40.3 |
| Bridgnorth West & Tasley | Neighbourhood | 5,212 | 209 | 40.1 |
| Market Drayton North | Neighbourhood | 4,779 | 191 | 40.0 |
| Shawbury | Town | 3,163 | 124 | 39.2 |
| Hadnall | Town | 1,434 | 54 | 37.7 |
| Cleobury Mortimer | Town | 3,517 | 129 | 36.7 |
| Prees | Neighbourhood | 4,873 | 175 | 35.9 |
| Albrighton | Town | 8,341 | 296 | 35.5 |
| Claverley & Worfield | Neighbourhood | 3,610 | 124 | 34.3 |
| Clee | Neighbourhood | 4,604 | 156 | 33.9 |
| Loton | Neighbourhood | 3,751 | 127 | 33.9 |
| Bridgnorth South & Alveley | Neighbourhood | 2,935 | 96 | 32.7 |
| Church Stretton | Town | 4,469 | 144 | 32.2 |
| The Strettons | Neighbourhood | 4,469 | 144 | 32.2 |
| Prees Higher Heath | Town | 1,429 | 46 | 32.2 |
| Morda | Town | 2,097 | 67 | 32.0 |
| Chirbury & Worthen | Neighbourhood | 6,002 | 191 | 31.8 |
| The Meres | Neighbourhood | 3,031 | 96 | 31.7 |
| Llanymynech | Neighbourhood | 4,305 | 133 | 30.9 |
| Bayston Hill | Town | 5,147 | 157 | 30.5 |
| Pant | Town | 1,631 | 49 | 30.0 |
| Cheswardine | Town | 1,336 | 40 | 29.9 |
| St Oswald | Neighbourhood | 4,909 | 145 | 29.5 |
| Burnell | Neighbourhood | 5,874 | 170 | 28.9 |
| Shifnal Rural | Neighbourhood | 5,792 | 163 | 28.1 |
| Bucknell (Shropshire) | Town | 1,230 | 34 | 27.6 |
| Clun | Neighbourhood | 4,709 | 128 | 27.2 |
| Cheswardine | Neighbourhood | 3,028 | 80 | 26.4 |
| West Felton | Town | 1,552 | 40 | 25.8 |
| Brown Clee | Neighbourhood | 4,162 | 107 | 25.7 |
| Baschurch | Town | 2,553 | 65 | 25.5 |
| Claverley | Town | 1,852 | 47 | 25.4 |
| Corvedale | Neighbourhood | 3,555 | 90 | 25.3 |
| Stottesdon, Kinlet & Hopton Wafers | Neighbourhood | 3,456 | 83 | 24.0 |
| Ruyton & Baschurch | Neighbourhood | 3,889 | 92 | 23.7 |
| Cleehill | Town | 1,523 | 36 | 23.6 |
| Trefonen | Town | 1,548 | 36 | 23.3 |
| Radbrook | Neighbourhood | 7,651 | 165 | 21.6 |
| Acton Burnell | Town | 1,679 | 36 | 21.4 |
| Ruyton-XI-Towns | Town | 1,336 | 27 | 20.2 |
| Doddington | Town | 1,222 | 21 | 17.2 |
| Alveley | Town | 1,219 | 19 | 15.6 |
The 10 locations below account for 20% of the crime recorded in Shropshire over the 12 months to August 2026; the most were recorded at “Parking Area” (1,221).
| Location | Crimes |
|---|---|
| On or near Parking Area | 1,221 |
| On or near Shopping Area | 590 |
| On or near Supermarket | 565 |
| On or near Petrol Station | 391 |
| On or near Sports/Recreation Area | 259 |
| On or near High Street | 237 |
| On or near Park/Open Space | 199 |
| On or near Nightclub | 167 |
| On or near Hospital | 158 |
| On or near Church Street | 96 |
Of the 16,661 crimes in Shropshire with a recorded outcome, 23% ended with the investigation complete and no suspect identified, against 35% across England and Wales; 4.6% were awaiting a court outcome (England and Wales: 5.2%). The 2,553 anti-social behaviour reports have no outcome and are left out.
| Outcome | Crimes | Share | England and Wales |
|---|---|---|---|
| Unable to prosecute suspect | 7,688 | 46.1% | 34.5% |
| Investigation complete; no suspect identified | 3,762 | 22.6% | 35.3% |
| Under investigation | 2,558 | 15.4% | 11.5% |
| Status update unavailable | 928 | 5.6% | 4.7% |
| Awaiting court outcome | 759 | 4.6% | 5.2% |
| Court result unavailable | 372 | 2.2% | 2.5% |
| Local resolution | 299 | 1.8% | 3.1% |
| Offender given a caution | 134 | 0.8% | 0.6% |
| Action to be taken by another organisation | 77 | 0.5% | 1.3% |
| Further action is not in the public interest | 65 | 0.4% | 0.3% |
| Further investigation is not in the public interest | 15 | 0.1% | 0.5% |
| Formal action is not in the public interest | 4 | 0.0% | 0.3% |
Shropshire has an estimated population of 332,455 (ONS, mid-2024). Compared with England and Wales it has fewer households without a car (14%, against 23%), an older population (26%, against 19%) and fewer students (5.0%, against 7.9%). On the England IoD 2025, the small areas (LSOAs) that make up Shropshire average decile 5.8 (1 = most deprived), close to the middle.
| Measure | Shropshire | England and Wales |
|---|---|---|
| Aged 0 to 15 | 15.7% | 18.3% |
| Aged 65 and over | 26.4% | 18.9% |
| Residents 16+ in work | 56.0% | 57.2% |
| Residents 16+ unemployed | 2.4% | 3.4% |
| Residents 16+ retired | 28.5% | 21.6% |
| Residents 16+ who are students | 5.0% | 7.9% |
| Residents 16+ with Level 4 qualifications or above (degree, HND and similar) | 32.5% | 33.8% |
| Residents 16+ with no qualifications | 16.7% | 18.2% |
| Households with no car or van | 13.8% | 23.3% |
| Homes owned outright or with a mortgage | 69.5% | 62.5% |
| Social rented homes | 13.0% | 17.1% |
| Private rented homes | 17.4% | 20.3% |
| Average deprivation decile (1 = most deprived, 10 = least) | 5.8 | 5.5 (England) |
| Residents in the most deprived 10% of areas | 1.0% | 10.1% (England) |
1,734 fly-tipping incidents were recorded in Shropshire in 2024/25 (5.2 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 Shropshire has the council's figures by place, type of waste and size, and its enforcement actions and fines.
Is Shropshire a safe place to live?
Shropshire recorded 57.8 crimes per 1,000 residents in the 12 months to August 2026, lower than the England and Wales rate of 96.7, and ranks 272nd of the 302 districts on this site by crime rate (1 = highest).
What is the most common crime in Shropshire?
Violence and sexual offences was the most common category, with 8,465 reports in the 12 months to August 2026, followed by anti-social behaviour (2,553).
Is crime in Shropshire going up or down?
Recorded crime in Shropshire was down 5% on the year before: 19,214 crimes in the 12 months to August 2026 against 20,275 in the previous 12 months.
What is the population of Shropshire?
About 332,455 people (ONS mid-2024 estimate), 26% of them aged 65 or over (England and Wales: 19%).
Which police force covers Shropshire?
Shropshire is policed by West Mercia.
How many crimes did the police record in Shropshire in the year ending March 2026?
15,813 crimes, excluding fraud, in the Home Office's police recorded crime statistics: 47.6 per 1,000 residents, against 83.2 across England and Wales. In the year ending March 2025 the figure was 16,295.
Which offences are more common in Shropshire than across England and Wales?
Relative to the national rate, the most over-represented categories in the year ending March 2026 were death or serious injury caused by unlawful driving (28 offences, 2.4 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.