Crime in the Lincolnshire Police area: statistics, rates and trends

72,613 crimes were recorded in the Lincolnshire Police area in the 12 months to August 2026, 92.0 per 1,000 residents. That is close to the England and Wales rate of 96.7, and up 3% on the year before.

Crime map

Circle size: crimes in each districtSeptember 2025 to August 2026. Source: data.police.uk, Open Government Licence v3.0

Violence and sexual offences (26,396), anti-social behaviour (16,251) and shoplifting (6,638) made up 68% of all recorded crime. Its crime rate ranks 19th of the 41 police force areas covered by this site (1 = highest), in the upper half.

Measurethe Lincolnshire Police areaEnglandEngland and Wales
Crimes, the 12 months to August 202672,6135,311,1065,618,064
Crimes per 1,000 residents92.096.796.7
Change on previous 12 months+3%-1%-1%
Population789,50254,941,05758,127,638

Recorded crime in the Lincolnshire Police area peaked in the year to August 2020 (74,156 crimes) and was lowest in the year to August 2018 (62,937). Between the years to August 2018 and 2026 it rose 15%, while across England and Wales it fell 4%.

PeriodCrimesPer 1,000England and Wales per 1,000
Year to August 202672,61392.096.7
Year to August 202570,28589.097.2
Year to August 202468,54886.897.9
Year to August 202367,36385.3n/a
Year to August 202272,15291.4102.0
Year to August 202171,74990.9101.4
Year to August 202074,15693.9102.7
Year to August 201972,85492.3101.7
Year to August 201862,93779.7100.8

Month by month

MonthCrimes
August 20266,916
July 20267,448
June 20266,329
May 20266,282
April 20266,183
March 20266,315
February 20265,187
January 20265,327
December 20255,425
November 20255,640
October 20255,801
September 20255,760

Compared with England and Wales, the Lincolnshire Police area recorded notably more anti-social behaviour (34% above the national rate), and notably less theft from the person (91% below) and drugs (55% below). On the year before, robbery rose from 408 to 631 and vehicle crime rose from 2,039 to 2,361, while theft from the person fell from 152 to 117 and drugs fell from 1,369 to 1,154.

Crime typeCrimesPer 1,000England and Wales per 1,000Change on year
Violence and sexual offences26,39633.434.2+4%
Anti-social behaviour16,25120.615.4+4%
Shoplifting6,6388.48.5-2%
Criminal damage and arson5,4616.96.7-1%
Public order4,4075.66.7+11%
Other theft3,8524.96.4+3%
Burglary2,4633.13.6+5%
Vehicle crime2,3613.05.0+16%
Other crime1,7562.22.1-8%
Drugs1,1541.53.3-16%
Robbery6310.81.4+55%
Bicycle theft6300.80.8+7%
Possession of weapons4960.61.0+11%
Theft from the person1170.11.7-23%

What each category covers: crime categories.

53,664 crimes, excluding fraud, were recorded by the police in the Lincolnshire Police area in the year ending March 2026, according to the Home Office's police recorded crime statistics. That is 68.0 per 1,000 residents, lower than the England and Wales rate of 83.2. The total was down 2% on the year ending March 2025 (54,894), against a fall of 2% across England and Wales. Among the 43 territorial police force areas of England and Wales, the Lincolnshire Police area had the 13th lowest rate (the street-level ranking above is among the 41 force areas with street-level pages on this site, over the 12 months to August 2026).

Offences recorded in the Lincolnshire Police area, the year ending March 2026

The largest category was violence without injury, with 8,792 offences (16% of the total). Relative to England and Wales, rates were highest for arson (1.7 times the national rate). Rates were lowest relative to the national rate for theft from the person (0.08 times), possession of drugs (0.39 times) and robbery of personal property (0.42 times).

The largest rises on the year were in arson (+18%) and possession of weapons (+12%). The largest falls were in theft from the person (−48%) and trafficking of drugs (−14%). 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).

OffenceOffencesPer 1,000England and Wales per 1,000Index (E&W = 1.00)Change on 2024/25
Violence without injury8,79211.113.20.84−6%
Stalking and harassment6,6848.510.10.84+1%
Shoplifting6,6058.48.11.03–
Violence with injury6,5998.48.11.03−2%
Criminal damage4,9056.26.80.91−3%
Public order offences4,0655.17.00.74−2%
Other theft offences3,6784.76.50.71−5%
Vehicle offences2,1052.75.00.53−4%
Miscellaneous crimes against society1,7512.22.11.06+3%
Other sexual offences1,7142.22.30.95−2%
Residential burglary1,5321.92.50.78−7%
Rape1,0821.41.21.13+12%
Non-residential burglary8061.01.10.91−3%
Possession of drugs7590.962.50.39−12%
Bicycle theft5640.710.850.84−6%
Arson5100.650.381.70+18%
Possession of weapons4400.561.000.56+12%
Trafficking of drugs4050.511.20.43−14%
Robbery of personal property3040.390.910.42−5%
Robbery of business property2130.270.470.57–
Theft from the person1120.141.80.08−48%
Death or serious injury caused by unlawful driving320.040.031.16+357%
Homicide70.010.011.10−42%

Recorded crime in the Lincolnshire Police area 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. The Lincolnshire Police area'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 MarchOffencesPer 1,000England and Wales per 1,000
202653,66468.083.2
202554,89469.584.5
202455,17169.986.2
202358,77874.489.2
202254,46769.085.4
202149,10762.274.1
202059,83675.884.7
201952,74766.884.1
201840,72651.678.2
201737,22047.169.1
201635,97345.662.3
201535,25544.757.1
201435,97445.655.9
201337,14447.056.7

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

Of the 7 districts in the Lincolnshire Police area with a figure for the year ending March 2026, Lincoln had the highest rate (116.6 per 1,000) and North Kesteven the lowest (39.1).

DistrictOffencesPer 1,000Index (E&W = 1.00)
Lincoln12,257116.61.40
Boston6,28488.41.06
East Lindsey10,31471.00.85
West Lindsey6,15562.00.75
South Holland6,00760.50.73
South Kesteven7,78252.90.64
North Kesteven4,78639.10.47

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 police force areas have a higher crime rate than the Lincolnshire Police area; the highest is the South Yorkshire Police area (116.1 per 1,000) and the lowest the Norfolk Police area (70.9).

Police force areaCrimesPer 1,000Rate vs the Lincolnshire Police area
Nottinghamshire125,603105.7+15%
Humberside98,416102.2+11%
Leicestershire100,53585.5-7%
Derbyshire103,14394.1+2%
Cambridgeshire83,02488.9-3%
South Yorkshire166,072116.1+26%
Northamptonshire73,72290.6-1%
Norfolk66,67570.9-23%

Of the 7 areas within the Lincolnshire Police area, Lincoln had the highest crime rate (158.9 per 1,000) and North Kesteven the lowest (54.8).

AreaTypePopulationCrimesPer 1,000
LincolnDistrict105,11416,704158.9
BostonDistrict71,0807,787109.6
East LindseyDistrict145,18314,29898.5
West LindseyDistrict99,2088,20482.7
South HollandDistrict99,2987,89979.5
South KestevenDistrict147,15111,00574.8
North KestevenDistrict122,4686,71654.8

Of the 56,362 crimes in the Lincolnshire Police area with a recorded outcome, 31% ended with the investigation complete and no suspect identified, against 35% across England and Wales; 5.7% were awaiting a court outcome (England and Wales: 5.2%). The 16,251 anti-social behaviour reports have no outcome and are left out.

OutcomeCrimesShareEngland and Wales
Unable to prosecute suspect23,64041.9%34.5%
Investigation complete; no suspect identified17,42830.9%35.3%
Under investigation5,70210.1%11.5%
Awaiting court outcome3,1985.7%5.2%
Court result unavailable1,7833.2%2.5%
Status update unavailable1,4802.6%4.7%
Further investigation is not in the public interest1,1582.1%0.5%
Action to be taken by another organisation7481.3%1.3%
Offender given a caution5210.9%0.6%
Local resolution3650.6%3.1%
Formal action is not in the public interest3080.5%0.3%
Suspect charged as part of another case280.0%0.0%

The Lincolnshire Police area has an estimated population of 789,502 (ONS, mid-2024). Compared with England and Wales it has fewer households without a car (16%, against 23%), an older population (24%, against 19%) and more retired residents (27%, against 22%). On the England IoD 2025, the small areas (LSOAs) that make up the Lincolnshire Police area average decile 5.2 (1 = most deprived), close to the middle.

Measurethe Lincolnshire Police areaEngland and Wales
Aged 0 to 1516.5%18.3%
Aged 65 and over24.1%18.9%
Residents 16+ in work54.4%57.2%
Residents 16+ unemployed2.8%3.4%
Residents 16+ retired27.4%21.6%
Residents 16+ who are students6.4%7.9%
Residents 16+ with Level 4 qualifications or above (degree, HND and similar)25.6%33.8%
Residents 16+ with no qualifications20.5%18.2%
Households with no car or van16.4%23.3%
Homes owned outright or with a mortgage67.2%62.5%
Social rented homes13.3%17.1%
Private rented homes19.4%20.3%
Average deprivation decile (1 = most deprived, 10 = least)5.25.5 (England)
Residents in the most deprived 10% of areas8.7%10.1% (England)

Is the Lincolnshire Police area a safe place to live?

The Lincolnshire Police area recorded 92.0 crimes per 1,000 residents in the 12 months to August 2026, close to the England and Wales rate of 96.7, and ranks 19th of the 41 police force areas on this site by crime rate (1 = highest). The categories most above the national rate were anti-social behaviour.

What is the most common crime in the Lincolnshire Police area?

Violence and sexual offences was the most common category, with 26,396 reports in the 12 months to August 2026, followed by anti-social behaviour (16,251).

Is crime in the Lincolnshire Police area going up or down?

Recorded crime in the Lincolnshire Police area was up 3% on the year before: 72,613 crimes in the 12 months to August 2026 against 70,285 in the previous 12 months.

What is the population of the Lincolnshire Police area?

About 789,502 people (ONS mid-2024 estimate), 24% of them aged 65 or over (England and Wales: 19%).

How many crimes did the police record in the Lincolnshire Police area in the year ending March 2026?

53,664 crimes, excluding fraud, in the Home Office's police recorded crime statistics: 68.0 per 1,000 residents, against 83.2 across England and Wales. In the year ending March 2025 the figure was 54,894.

Which offences are more common in the Lincolnshire Police area than across England and Wales?

Relative to the national rate, the most over-represented categories in the year ending March 2026 were arson (510 offences, 1.7 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.

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Cite this page

<a href="https://policestatistics.co.uk/police-forces/lincolnshire">https://policestatistics.co.uk/police-forces/lincolnshire</a>