Crime in Watford: statistics, rates and trends

Violence and sexual offences (3,953), anti-social behaviour (2,417) and other theft (976) made up 62% of all recorded crime. Its crime rate ranks 69th of the 302 districts covered by this site (1 = highest), in the highest quarter.

Recorded crime in Watford peaked in the year to August 2019 (12,849 crimes) and was lowest in the year to August 2021 (10,065). Between the years to August 2018 and 2026 it fell 6%, in line with England and Wales.

Month by month

Compared with England and Wales, Watford recorded notably more bicycle theft (2.1 times the national rate), anti-social behaviour (47% above the national rate) and other theft (41% above the national rate), and notably less other crime (25% below) and burglary (24% below). On the year before, drugs rose from 284 to 486 and bicycle theft rose from 156 to 188, while vehicle crime fell from 729 to 600 and burglary fell from 343 to 290.

What each category covers: crime categories.

9,296 crimes, excluding fraud, were recorded by the police in Watford in the year ending March 2026, according to the Home Office's police recorded crime statistics. That is 86.7 per 1,000 residents, close to the England and Wales rate of 83.2. The total was up 5% on the year ending March 2025 (8,892), against a fall of 2% across England and Wales. Among the 272 districts of England and Wales with a figure for that year, Watford had the 91st highest 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 Hertfordshire Police area in the year ending March 2026, 1.4% 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 Watford is a slight undercount.

Offences recorded in Watford, the year ending March 2026

The largest category was violence without injury, with 1,658 offences (18% of the total). Relative to England and Wales, rates were highest for bicycle theft (1.9 times the national rate) and other theft offences (1.4 times the national rate). Rates were lowest relative to the national rate for non-residential burglary (0.66 times), miscellaneous crimes against society (0.70 times) and arson (0.71 times).

The largest rises on the year were in trafficking of drugs (from 45 to 131) and stalking and harassment (+27%). The largest falls were in robbery of personal property (−49%) and non-residential burglary (−29%). 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).

Recorded crime in Watford 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. Watford's rate was above the England and Wales rate in 9 of those 14 years and below it in 5. Changes in how forces record crime move these figures as well as changes in crime (methodology).

Districts in the Hertfordshire Police area, the year ending March 2026

Of the 10 districts in the Hertfordshire Police area with a figure for the year ending March 2026, Watford had the 2nd highest rate.

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.

2 of the 8 nearest districts have a higher crime rate than Watford; the highest is Brent district (120.6 per 1,000) and the lowest Three Rivers (67.7).

Of the 13 areas within Watford, Central had the highest crime rate (319.9 per 1,000) and Nascot the lowest (42.0), 8 times apart.

The 10 locations below account for 29% of the crime recorded in Watford over the 12 months to August 2026; the most were recorded at “Parking Area” (818).

Of the 9,461 crimes in Watford with a recorded outcome, 40% ended with the investigation complete and no suspect identified, against 35% across England and Wales; 5.1% were awaiting a court outcome (England and Wales: 5.2%). The 2,417 anti-social behaviour reports have no outcome and are left out.

Watford has an estimated population of 107,171 (ONS, mid-2024). Compared with England and Wales it has more private renting (28%, against 20%), fewer retired residents (15%, against 22%) and a younger population (13%, against 19%). On the England IoD 2025, the small areas (LSOAs) that make up Watford average decile 6.1 (1 = most deprived), close to the middle.

Police-recorded crime from data.police.uk (September 2017 to August 2026), ONS population estimates and Census 2021. Definitions and limitations: methodology.