Crime in the North Wales Police area: statistics, rates and trends
64,680 crimes were recorded in the North Wales Police area in the 12 months to August 2026, 92.8 per 1,000 residents. That is close to the England and Wales rate of 96.7, and almost unchanged on the year before.
Table of Contents
- Crime map
- Crime in the North Wales Police area at a glance
- Crime trends in the North Wales Police area
- Types of crime in the North Wales Police area
- Home Office recorded crime in the North Wales Police area
- The North Wales Police area compared with nearby police force areas
- Areas within the North Wales Police area
- What happened after crimes were reported in the North Wales Police area
- Demographics of the North Wales Police area
- Questions about crime in the North Wales Police area
- About this data
Crime map
Violence and sexual offences (26,040), anti-social behaviour (13,279) and criminal damage and arson (5,331) made up 69% of all recorded crime. Its crime rate ranks 17th of the 41 police force areas covered by this site (1 = highest), in the upper half.
| Measure | the North Wales Police area | Wales | England and Wales |
|---|---|---|---|
| Crimes, the 12 months to August 2026 | 64,680 | 306,958 | 5,618,064 |
| Crimes per 1,000 residents | 92.8 | 96.3 | 96.7 |
| Change on previous 12 months | -1% | +1% | -1% |
| Population | 697,115 | 3,186,581 | 58,127,638 |
The year to August 2026 had the least recorded crime in the North Wales Police area of any year here (64,680 crimes). Between the years to August 2018 and 2026 it fell 5%, in line with England and Wales.
| Period | Crimes | Per 1,000 | England and Wales per 1,000 |
|---|---|---|---|
| Year to August 2026 | 64,680 | 92.8 | 96.7 |
| Year to August 2025 | 65,254 | 93.6 | 97.2 |
| Year to August 2024 | 66,556 | 95.5 | 97.9 |
| Year to August 2023 | 71,568 | 102.7 | n/a |
| Year to August 2022 | 78,753 | 113.0 | 102.0 |
| Year to August 2021 | 70,399 | 101.0 | 101.4 |
| Year to August 2020 | 71,247 | 102.2 | 102.7 |
| Year to August 2019 | 72,392 | 103.8 | 101.7 |
| Year to August 2018 | 68,202 | 97.8 | 100.8 |
Month by month
| Month | Crimes |
|---|---|
| August 2026 | 6,771 |
| July 2026 | 5,587 |
| June 2026 | 5,389 |
| May 2026 | 6,099 |
| April 2026 | 5,621 |
| March 2026 | 5,352 |
| February 2026 | 4,793 |
| January 2026 | 4,927 |
| December 2025 | 4,640 |
| November 2025 | 5,173 |
| October 2025 | 5,156 |
| September 2025 | 5,172 |
No category with at least 20 crimes was notably above the England and Wales rate, and theft from the person (91% below) and robbery (79% below) were well below it. On the year before, theft from the person fell from 166 to 104 and bicycle theft fell from 331 to 275.
| Crime type | Crimes | Per 1,000 | England and Wales per 1,000 | Change on year |
|---|---|---|---|---|
| Violence and sexual offences | 26,040 | 37.4 | 34.2 | -3% |
| Anti-social behaviour | 13,279 | 19.0 | 15.4 | +2% |
| Criminal damage and arson | 5,331 | 7.6 | 6.7 | -6% |
| Shoplifting | 5,287 | 7.6 | 8.5 | +6% |
| Public order | 4,396 | 6.3 | 6.7 | +2% |
| Other theft | 3,623 | 5.2 | 6.4 | -1% |
| Burglary | 1,644 | 2.4 | 3.6 | -6% |
| Drugs | 1,594 | 2.3 | 3.3 | +10% |
| Other crime | 1,256 | 1.8 | 2.1 | -3% |
| Vehicle crime | 1,138 | 1.6 | 5.0 | -7% |
| Possession of weapons | 518 | 0.7 | 1.0 | +13% |
| Bicycle theft | 275 | 0.4 | 0.8 | -17% |
| Robbery | 195 | 0.3 | 1.4 | +3% |
| Theft from the person | 104 | 0.1 | 1.7 | -37% |
What each category covers: crime categories.
52,435 crimes, excluding fraud, were recorded by the police in the North Wales Police area in the year ending March 2026, according to the Home Office's police recorded crime statistics. That is 75.2 per 1,000 residents, close to the England and Wales rate of 83.2. The total was down 1% on the year ending March 2025 (53,148), against a fall of 2% across England and Wales. Among the 43 territorial police force areas of England and Wales, the North Wales Police area had the 20th highest 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 North Wales Police area, the year ending March 2026
The largest category was violence without injury, with 9,781 offences (19% of the total). Relative to England and Wales, rates were highest for arson (1.6 times the national rate). Rates were lowest relative to the national rate for theft from the person (0.09 times), robbery of business property (0.13 times) and robbery of personal property (0.22 times).
The largest rises on the year were in trafficking of drugs (from 260 to 578) and possession of drugs (+21%). The largest falls were in theft from the person (−45%) and non-residential burglary (−18%). 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 | 9,781 | 14.0 | 13.2 | 1.06 | +4% |
| Stalking and harassment | 8,578 | 12.3 | 10.1 | 1.22 | −7% |
| Violence with injury | 5,500 | 7.9 | 8.1 | 0.97 | −14% |
| Shoplifting | 5,043 | 7.2 | 8.1 | 0.89 | – |
| Criminal damage | 4,937 | 7.1 | 6.8 | 1.04 | −8% |
| Public order offences | 4,607 | 6.6 | 7.0 | 0.95 | +3% |
| Other theft offences | 3,457 | 5.0 | 6.5 | 0.76 | −4% |
| Other sexual offences | 1,865 | 2.7 | 2.3 | 1.18 | +7% |
| Miscellaneous crimes against society | 1,513 | 2.2 | 2.1 | 1.03 | +9% |
| Possession of drugs | 1,475 | 2.1 | 2.5 | 0.85 | +21% |
| Vehicle offences | 1,199 | 1.7 | 5.0 | 0.34 | −0% |
| Residential burglary | 1,088 | 1.6 | 2.5 | 0.63 | −5% |
| Rape | 717 | 1.0 | 1.2 | 0.85 | +0% |
| Trafficking of drugs | 578 | 0.83 | 1.2 | 0.70 | +122% |
| Possession of weapons | 563 | 0.81 | 1.00 | 0.81 | +21% |
| Non-residential burglary | 494 | 0.71 | 1.1 | 0.63 | −18% |
| Arson | 426 | 0.61 | 0.38 | 1.61 | +1% |
| Bicycle theft | 303 | 0.43 | 0.85 | 0.51 | −3% |
| Robbery of personal property | 142 | 0.20 | 0.91 | 0.22 | −10% |
| Theft from the person | 106 | 0.15 | 1.8 | 0.09 | −45% |
| Robbery of business property | 43 | 0.06 | 0.47 | 0.13 | – |
| Death or serious injury caused by unlawful driving | 17 | 0.02 | 0.03 | 0.70 | +6% |
| Homicide | 3 | <0.01 | 0.01 | 0.54 | −40% |
Recorded crime in the North Wales 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 North Wales Police area's rate was above the England and Wales rate in 5 of those 14 years and below it in 9. 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 | 52,435 | 75.2 | 83.2 |
| 2025 | 53,148 | 76.2 | 84.5 |
| 2024 | 55,928 | 80.2 | 86.2 |
| 2023 | 63,909 | 91.7 | 89.2 |
| 2022 | 67,760 | 97.2 | 85.4 |
| 2021 | 54,980 | 78.9 | 74.1 |
| 2020 | 60,611 | 86.9 | 84.7 |
| 2019 | 59,831 | 85.8 | 84.1 |
| 2018 | 51,629 | 74.1 | 78.2 |
| 2017 | 41,164 | 59.0 | 69.1 |
| 2016 | 38,700 | 55.5 | 62.3 |
| 2015 | 36,743 | 52.7 | 57.1 |
| 2014 | 36,540 | 52.4 | 55.9 |
| 2013 | 37,655 | 54.0 | 56.7 |
Districts in the North Wales Police area, the year ending March 2026
Of the 6 districts in the North Wales Police area with a figure for the year ending March 2026, Denbighshire had the highest rate (94.7 per 1,000) and Isle of Anglesey the lowest (56.5).
| District | Offences | Per 1,000 | Index (E&W = 1.00) |
|---|---|---|---|
| Denbighshire | 9,301 | 94.7 | 1.14 |
| Wrexham | 11,482 | 83.1 | 1.00 |
| Conwy | 9,411 | 81.9 | 0.98 |
| Gwynedd | 8,420 | 69.7 | 0.84 |
| Flintshire | 9,893 | 63.5 | 0.76 |
| Isle of Anglesey | 3,907 | 56.5 | 0.68 |
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 North Wales Police area; the highest is the West Midlands Police area (106.6 per 1,000) and the lowest the West Mercia Police area (72.2).
| Police force area | Crimes | Per 1,000 | Rate vs the North Wales Police area |
|---|---|---|---|
| Merseyside | 152,610 | 103.4 | +11% |
| Cheshire | 83,476 | 73.2 | -21% |
| Lancashire | 163,902 | 102.3 | +10% |
| Staffordshire | 107,433 | 91.2 | -2% |
| West Mercia | 96,831 | 72.2 | -22% |
| West Midlands | 323,754 | 106.6 | +15% |
| Dyfed-Powys | 44,753 | 85.4 | -8% |
| Derbyshire | 103,143 | 94.1 | +1% |
Of the 6 areas within the North Wales Police area, Denbighshire had the highest crime rate (110.8 per 1,000) and Isle of Anglesey the lowest (73.4).
| Area | Type | Population | Crimes | Per 1,000 |
|---|---|---|---|---|
| Denbighshire | District | 98,202 | 10,876 | 110.8 |
| Conwy | District | 114,891 | 12,177 | 106.0 |
| Wrexham | District | 138,245 | 13,929 | 100.8 |
| Gwynedd | District | 120,813 | 10,688 | 88.5 |
| Flintshire | District | 155,867 | 11,941 | 76.6 |
| Isle of Anglesey | District | 69,097 | 5,069 | 73.4 |
Of the 51,401 crimes in the North Wales Police area with a recorded outcome, 21% ended with the investigation complete and no suspect identified, against 35% across England and Wales; 6.3% were awaiting a court outcome (England and Wales: 5.2%). The 13,279 anti-social behaviour reports have no outcome and are left out.
| Outcome | Crimes | Share | England and Wales |
|---|---|---|---|
| Unable to prosecute suspect | 20,220 | 39.3% | 34.5% |
| Investigation complete; no suspect identified | 11,017 | 21.4% | 35.3% |
| Under investigation | 8,337 | 16.2% | 11.5% |
| Awaiting court outcome | 3,252 | 6.3% | 5.2% |
| Status update unavailable | 2,834 | 5.5% | 4.7% |
| Local resolution | 1,992 | 3.9% | 3.1% |
| Court result unavailable | 1,489 | 2.9% | 2.5% |
| Action to be taken by another organisation | 1,267 | 2.5% | 1.3% |
| Further action is not in the public interest | 473 | 0.9% | 0.3% |
| Further investigation is not in the public interest | 210 | 0.4% | 0.5% |
| Offender given a caution | 155 | 0.3% | 0.6% |
| Formal action is not in the public interest | 141 | 0.3% | 0.3% |
The North Wales Police area has an estimated population of 697,115 (ONS, mid-2024). Compared with England and Wales it has an older population (24%, against 19%), fewer households without a car (17%, against 23%) and more retired residents (27%, against 22%). On the Wales WIMD 2025, the small areas (LSOAs) that make up the North Wales Police area average decile 5.9 (1 = most deprived), close to the middle.
| Measure | the North Wales Police area | England and Wales |
|---|---|---|
| Aged 0 to 15 | 16.7% | 18.3% |
| Aged 65 and over | 24.0% | 18.9% |
| Residents 16+ in work | 53.9% | 57.2% |
| Residents 16+ unemployed | 2.9% | 3.4% |
| Residents 16+ retired | 27.1% | 21.6% |
| Residents 16+ who are students | 6.5% | 7.9% |
| Residents 16+ with Level 4 qualifications or above (degree, HND and similar) | 31.1% | 33.8% |
| Residents 16+ with no qualifications | 18.7% | 18.2% |
| Households with no car or van | 17.3% | 23.3% |
| Homes owned outright or with a mortgage | 67.6% | 62.5% |
| Social rented homes | 15.6% | 17.1% |
| Private rented homes | 16.6% | 20.3% |
| Average deprivation decile (1 = most deprived, 10 = least) | 5.9 | 5.5 (Wales) |
| Residents in the most deprived 10% of areas | 5.7% | 9.5% (Wales) |
Is the North Wales Police area a safe place to live?
The North Wales Police area recorded 92.8 crimes per 1,000 residents in the 12 months to August 2026, close to the England and Wales rate of 96.7, and ranks 17th of the 41 police force areas on this site by crime rate (1 = highest).
What is the most common crime in the North Wales Police area?
Violence and sexual offences was the most common category, with 26,040 reports in the 12 months to August 2026, followed by anti-social behaviour (13,279).
Is crime in the North Wales Police area going up or down?
Recorded crime in the North Wales Police area was almost unchanged on the year before: 64,680 crimes in the 12 months to August 2026 against 65,254 in the previous 12 months.
What is the population of the North Wales Police area?
About 697,115 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 North Wales Police area in the year ending March 2026?
52,435 crimes, excluding fraud, in the Home Office's police recorded crime statistics: 75.2 per 1,000 residents, against 83.2 across England and Wales. In the year ending March 2025 the figure was 53,148.
Which offences are more common in the North Wales 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 (426 offences, 1.6 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.