Crime in West Berkshire: statistics, rates and trends
10,756 crimes were recorded in West Berkshire in the 12 months to August 2026, 65.1 per 1,000 residents. That is lower than the England and Wales rate of 96.7, and down 4% on the year before.
Table of Contents
- Crime map
- Crime in West Berkshire at a glance
- Crime trends in West Berkshire
- Types of crime in West Berkshire
- Home Office recorded crime in West Berkshire
- West Berkshire compared with nearby districts
- Areas within West Berkshire
- Streets with the most crime in West Berkshire
- What happened after crimes were reported in West Berkshire
- Demographics of West Berkshire
- Fly-tipping in West Berkshire
- Questions about crime in West Berkshire
- About this data
Crime map
Violence and sexual offences (3,902), anti-social behaviour (1,417) and shoplifting (1,216) made up 61% of all recorded crime. Its crime rate ranks 242nd of the 302 districts covered by this site (1 = highest), in the lowest quarter.
| Measure | West Berkshire | South East | England and Wales |
|---|---|---|---|
| Crimes, the 12 months to August 2026 | 10,756 | 787,517 | 5,618,064 |
| Crimes per 1,000 residents | 65.1 | 81.7 | 96.7 |
| Change on previous 12 months | -4% | 0% | -1% |
| Population | 165,112 | 9,642,942 | 58,127,638 |
Recorded crime in West Berkshire peaked in the year to August 2022 (11,341 crimes) and was lowest in the year to August 2020 (9,656). Between the years to August 2018 and 2026 it rose 11%, while across England and Wales it fell 4%.
| Period | Crimes | Per 1,000 | England and Wales per 1,000 |
|---|---|---|---|
| Year to August 2026 | 10,756 | 65.1 | 96.7 |
| Year to August 2025 | 11,147 | 67.5 | 97.2 |
| Year to August 2024 | 10,964 | 66.4 | 97.9 |
| Year to August 2023 | 11,280 | 68.3 | n/a |
| Year to August 2022 | 11,341 | 68.7 | 102.0 |
| Year to August 2021 | 9,859 | 59.7 | 101.4 |
| Year to August 2020 | 9,656 | 58.5 | 102.7 |
| Year to August 2019 | 10,315 | 62.5 | 101.7 |
| Year to August 2018 | 9,685 | 58.7 | 100.8 |
Month by month
| Month | Crimes |
|---|---|
| August 2026 | 941 |
| July 2026 | 1,079 |
| June 2026 | 917 |
| May 2026 | 1,011 |
| April 2026 | 839 |
| March 2026 | 900 |
| February 2026 | 751 |
| January 2026 | 789 |
| December 2025 | 780 |
| November 2025 | 898 |
| October 2025 | 918 |
| September 2025 | 933 |
No category with at least 20 crimes was notably above the England and Wales rate, and theft from the person (88% below) and possession of weapons (70% below) were well below it. On the year before, other crime rose from 253 to 296, while theft from the person fell from 57 to 32 and possession of weapons fell from 64 to 48.
| Crime type | Crimes | Per 1,000 | England and Wales per 1,000 | Change on year |
|---|---|---|---|---|
| Violence and sexual offences | 3,902 | 23.6 | 34.2 | -5% |
| Anti-social behaviour | 1,417 | 8.6 | 15.4 | -6% |
| Shoplifting | 1,216 | 7.4 | 8.5 | +9% |
| Criminal damage and arson | 927 | 5.6 | 6.7 | +3% |
| Public order | 813 | 4.9 | 6.7 | -12% |
| Other theft | 694 | 4.2 | 6.4 | +5% |
| Vehicle crime | 439 | 2.7 | 5.0 | -17% |
| Burglary | 431 | 2.6 | 3.6 | +10% |
| Drugs | 339 | 2.1 | 3.3 | -15% |
| Other crime | 296 | 1.8 | 2.1 | +17% |
| Bicycle theft | 109 | 0.7 | 0.8 | -23% |
| Robbery | 93 | 0.6 | 1.4 | +6% |
| Possession of weapons | 48 | 0.3 | 1.0 | -25% |
| Theft from the person | 32 | 0.2 | 1.7 | -44% |
What each category covers: crime categories.
9,078 crimes, excluding fraud, were recorded by the police in West Berkshire in the year ending March 2026, according to the Home Office's police recorded crime statistics. That is 55.0 per 1,000 residents, lower than the England and Wales rate of 83.2. The total was down 4% on the year ending March 2025 (9,498), against a fall of 2% across England and Wales. Among the 272 districts of England and Wales with a figure for that year, West Berkshire had the 56th 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 West Berkshire, the year ending March 2026
The largest category was violence without injury, with 1,268 offences (14% 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 (0.12 times), robbery of personal property (0.26 times) and possession of weapons (0.41 times).
The largest rises on the year were in arson (+51%) and other sexual offences (+10%). The largest falls were in bicycle theft (−42%) and theft from the person (−38%). 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 | 1,268 | 7.7 | 13.2 | 0.58 | −7% |
| Stalking and harassment | 1,228 | 7.4 | 10.1 | 0.74 | +4% |
| Shoplifting | 1,111 | 6.7 | 8.1 | 0.83 | – |
| Violence with injury | 917 | 5.6 | 8.1 | 0.68 | +1% |
| Criminal damage | 870 | 5.3 | 6.8 | 0.77 | −2% |
| Public order offences | 845 | 5.1 | 7.0 | 0.74 | −1% |
| Other theft offences | 659 | 4.0 | 6.5 | 0.61 | −3% |
| Vehicle offences | 484 | 2.9 | 5.0 | 0.58 | −14% |
| Possession of drugs | 294 | 1.8 | 2.5 | 0.71 | −22% |
| Other sexual offences | 270 | 1.6 | 2.3 | 0.72 | +10% |
| Residential burglary | 217 | 1.3 | 2.5 | 0.53 | −21% |
| Miscellaneous crimes against society | 207 | 1.3 | 2.1 | 0.60 | −11% |
| Rape | 133 | 0.81 | 1.2 | 0.67 | +4% |
| Non-residential burglary | 130 | 0.79 | 1.1 | 0.70 | −27% |
| Bicycle theft | 100 | 0.61 | 0.85 | 0.71 | −42% |
| Trafficking of drugs | 90 | 0.55 | 1.2 | 0.46 | −29% |
| Possession of weapons | 68 | 0.41 | 1.00 | 0.41 | −1% |
| Robbery of business property | 60 | 0.36 | 0.47 | 0.77 | – |
| Arson | 53 | 0.32 | 0.38 | 0.84 | +51% |
| Robbery of personal property | 39 | 0.24 | 0.91 | 0.26 | −5% |
| Theft from the person | 34 | 0.21 | 1.8 | 0.12 | −38% |
| Death or serious injury caused by unlawful driving | 1 | 0.01 | 0.03 | 0.17 | 0% |
| Homicide | 0 | 0.00 | 0.01 | 0.00 | – |
Recorded crime in West Berkshire 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. West Berkshire'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 | 9,078 | 55.0 | 83.2 |
| 2025 | 9,498 | 57.5 | 84.5 |
| 2024 | 9,250 | 56.0 | 86.2 |
| 2023 | 9,786 | 59.3 | 89.2 |
| 2022 | 9,173 | 55.6 | 85.4 |
| 2021 | 7,591 | 46.0 | 74.1 |
| 2020 | 9,176 | 55.6 | 84.7 |
| 2019 | 9,024 | 54.7 | 84.1 |
| 2018 | 8,284 | 50.2 | 78.2 |
| 2017 | 8,005 | 48.5 | 69.1 |
| 2016 | 7,491 | 45.4 | 62.3 |
| 2015 | 7,861 | 47.6 | 57.1 |
| 2014 | 8,125 | 49.2 | 55.9 |
| 2013 | 8,059 | 48.8 | 56.7 |
Districts in the Thames Valley Police area, the year ending March 2026
Of the 13 districts in the Thames Valley Police area with a figure for the year ending March 2026, West Berkshire had the 7th highest rate.
| District | Offences | Per 1,000 | Index (E&W = 1.00) |
|---|---|---|---|
| Reading | 17,915 | 97.9 | 1.18 |
| Oxford | 15,987 | 96.3 | 1.16 |
| Slough | 14,784 | 88.3 | 1.06 |
| Milton Keynes | 26,843 | 87.8 | 1.05 |
| Cherwell | 10,854 | 63.7 | 0.77 |
| Windsor and Maidenhead | 9,081 | 57.1 | 0.69 |
| West Berkshire | 9,078 | 55.0 | 0.66 |
| Buckinghamshire | 31,038 | 53.6 | 0.64 |
| Bracknell Forest | 6,881 | 52.6 | 0.63 |
| Vale of White Horse | 6,925 | 46.4 | 0.56 |
| West Oxfordshire | 5,173 | 42.8 | 0.51 |
| South Oxfordshire | 6,359 | 40.6 | 0.49 |
| Wokingham | 7,341 | 39.2 | 0.47 |
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.
4 of the 8 nearest districts have a higher crime rate than West Berkshire; the highest is Reading district (112.0 per 1,000) and the lowest Hart (44.2).
| District | Crimes | Per 1,000 | Rate vs West Berkshire |
|---|---|---|---|
| Basingstoke and Deane | 13,530 | 70.1 | +8% |
| Reading | 20,492 | 112.0 | +72% |
| South Oxfordshire | 7,440 | 47.5 | -27% |
| Wokingham | 8,438 | 45.1 | -31% |
| Vale of White Horse | 7,947 | 53.2 | -18% |
| Hart | 4,563 | 44.2 | -32% |
| Bracknell Forest | 8,590 | 65.7 | +1% |
| Oxford | 17,767 | 107.0 | +64% |
Of the 44 areas within West Berkshire, Newbury Central had the highest crime rate (190.0 per 1,000) and Bradfield (West Berkshire) the lowest (15.9), 12 times apart.
| Area | Type | Population | Crimes | Per 1,000 |
|---|---|---|---|---|
| Newbury Central | Neighbourhood | 6,433 | 1,222 | 190.0 |
| Thatcham Central | Neighbourhood | 9,670 | 901 | 93.2 |
| Newbury | Town | 41,309 | 3,803 | 92.1 |
| Newbury Clay Hill | Neighbourhood | 9,001 | 796 | 88.4 |
| Newbury Greenham | Neighbourhood | 12,878 | 1,110 | 86.2 |
| Burghfield & Mortimer | Neighbourhood | 9,892 | 838 | 84.7 |
| Mortimer | Town | 3,728 | 291 | 78.1 |
| Theale (West Berkshire) | Town | 3,100 | 241 | 77.7 |
| Theale | Neighbourhood | 3,100 | 241 | 77.7 |
| Chieveley | Town | 1,542 | 114 | 73.9 |
| Burghfield Common | Town | 6,793 | 502 | 73.9 |
| Newbury Speen | Neighbourhood | 10,041 | 732 | 72.9 |
| Greenham | Town | 1,875 | 125 | 66.7 |
| Thatcham | Town | 25,528 | 1,696 | 66.4 |
| Hungerford | Town | 6,153 | 405 | 65.8 |
| Tilehurst Birch Copse | Neighbourhood | 7,845 | 515 | 65.6 |
| Aldermaston | Town | 1,516 | 98 | 64.6 |
| Pangbourne | Town | 3,385 | 210 | 62.0 |
| Aldermaston | Neighbourhood | 4,289 | 243 | 56.7 |
| Lambourn | Town | 4,154 | 233 | 56.1 |
| Thatcham North East | Neighbourhood | 7,362 | 408 | 55.4 |
| Hungerford & Kintbury | Neighbourhood | 11,172 | 588 | 52.6 |
| Tilehurst South & Holybrook | Neighbourhood | 7,804 | 410 | 52.5 |
| Thatcham West | Neighbourhood | 6,771 | 346 | 51.1 |
| Upper Bucklebury | Town | 1,567 | 75 | 47.9 |
| Bucklebury | Neighbourhood | 1,567 | 75 | 47.9 |
| Newbury Wash Common | Neighbourhood | 9,709 | 457 | 47.1 |
| Bradfield | Neighbourhood | 7,647 | 338 | 44.2 |
| Hampstead Norreys | Town | 1,532 | 61 | 39.8 |
| Kintbury | Town | 1,479 | 58 | 39.2 |
| Downlands | Neighbourhood | 4,555 | 174 | 38.2 |
| Ridgeway | Neighbourhood | 3,345 | 125 | 37.4 |
| Chieveley & Cold Ash | Neighbourhood | 8,584 | 319 | 37.2 |
| Compton (West Berkshire) | Town | 1,813 | 64 | 35.3 |
| Tilehurst & Purley | Neighbourhood | 11,171 | 371 | 33.2 |
| Hermitage | Town | 2,366 | 74 | 31.3 |
| Cold Ash | Town | 4,676 | 131 | 28.0 |
| Southend | Town | 1,385 | 37 | 26.7 |
| Thatcham Colthrop & Crookham | Neighbourhood | 1,725 | 41 | 23.8 |
| Streatley (West Berkshire) | Town | 1,313 | 29 | 22.1 |
| Great Shefford | Town | 1,424 | 30 | 21.1 |
| Basildon | Neighbourhood | 3,012 | 63 | 20.9 |
| Upper Basildon | Town | 1,699 | 34 | 20.0 |
| Bradfield (West Berkshire) | Town | 1,756 | 28 | 15.9 |
The 10 locations below account for 22% of the crime recorded in West Berkshire over the 12 months to August 2026; the most were recorded at “Supermarket” (564).
| Location | Crimes |
|---|---|
| On or near Supermarket | 564 |
| On or near Parking Area | 451 |
| On or near Petrol Station | 322 |
| On or near Hospital | 198 |
| On or near Park/Open Space | 194 |
| On or near Sports/Recreation Area | 193 |
| On or near Shopping Area | 137 |
| On or near Stirrup Close | 126 |
| On or near Bridge Street | 110 |
| On or near Northbrook Street | 96 |
Of the 9,339 crimes in West Berkshire with a recorded outcome, 35% ended with the investigation complete and no suspect identified, against 35% across England and Wales; 4.2% were awaiting a court outcome (England and Wales: 5.2%). The 1,417 anti-social behaviour reports have no outcome and are left out.
| Outcome | Crimes | Share | England and Wales |
|---|---|---|---|
| Investigation complete; no suspect identified | 3,289 | 35.2% | 35.3% |
| Unable to prosecute suspect | 2,914 | 31.2% | 34.5% |
| Under investigation | 1,260 | 13.5% | 11.5% |
| Status update unavailable | 504 | 5.4% | 4.7% |
| Local resolution | 440 | 4.7% | 3.1% |
| Awaiting court outcome | 389 | 4.2% | 5.2% |
| Action to be taken by another organisation | 200 | 2.1% | 1.3% |
| Court result unavailable | 162 | 1.7% | 2.5% |
| Further investigation is not in the public interest | 78 | 0.8% | 0.5% |
| Offender given a caution | 74 | 0.8% | 0.6% |
| Suspect charged as part of another case | 18 | 0.2% | 0.0% |
| Further action is not in the public interest | 6 | 0.1% | 0.3% |
West Berkshire has an estimated population of 165,112 (ONS, mid-2024). Compared with England and Wales it has fewer households without a car (12%, against 23%), fewer students (5.2%, against 7.9%) and fewer residents with no qualifications (14%, against 18%). On the England IoD 2025, the small areas (LSOAs) that make up West Berkshire average decile 7.6 (1 = most deprived), less deprived than average.
| Measure | West Berkshire | England and Wales |
|---|---|---|
| Aged 0 to 15 | 18.7% | 18.3% |
| Aged 65 and over | 20.3% | 18.9% |
| Residents 16+ in work | 63.0% | 57.2% |
| Residents 16+ unemployed | 2.5% | 3.4% |
| Residents 16+ retired | 22.5% | 21.6% |
| Residents 16+ who are students | 5.2% | 7.9% |
| Residents 16+ with Level 4 qualifications or above (degree, HND and similar) | 37.0% | 33.8% |
| Residents 16+ with no qualifications | 14.1% | 18.2% |
| Households with no car or van | 12.1% | 23.3% |
| Homes owned outright or with a mortgage | 68.9% | 62.5% |
| Social rented homes | 14.0% | 17.1% |
| Private rented homes | 17.1% | 20.3% |
| Average deprivation decile (1 = most deprived, 10 = least) | 7.6 | 5.5 (England) |
1,043 fly-tipping incidents were recorded in West Berkshire in 2024/25 (6.3 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 West Berkshire has the council's figures by place, type of waste and size, and its enforcement actions and fines.
Is West Berkshire a safe place to live?
West Berkshire recorded 65.1 crimes per 1,000 residents in the 12 months to August 2026, lower than the England and Wales rate of 96.7, and ranks 242nd of the 302 districts on this site by crime rate (1 = highest).
What is the most common crime in West Berkshire?
Violence and sexual offences was the most common category, with 3,902 reports in the 12 months to August 2026, followed by anti-social behaviour (1,417).
Is crime in West Berkshire going up or down?
Recorded crime in West Berkshire was down 4% on the year before: 10,756 crimes in the 12 months to August 2026 against 11,147 in the previous 12 months.
What is the population of West Berkshire?
About 165,112 people (ONS mid-2024 estimate), 20% of them aged 65 or over (England and Wales: 19%).
Which police force covers West Berkshire?
West Berkshire is policed by Thames Valley.
How many crimes did the police record in West Berkshire in the year ending March 2026?
9,078 crimes, excluding fraud, in the Home Office's police recorded crime statistics: 55.0 per 1,000 residents, against 83.2 across England and Wales. In the year ending March 2025 the figure was 9,498.
Which offences are more common in West Berkshire 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 violence without injury (1,268).
Police-recorded crime from data.police.uk (September 2017 to August 2026), ONS population estimates and Census 2021. Definitions and limitations: methodology.