Photo: Jeffrey Wallace · CC BY-SA 4.0More crimes per resident are recorded in Woodlands County than in 86% of Canadian towns
Of the two halves, violence comes to 106.4 and other offences to 127.7, beside norms of 85.7 and 62.8. It grades D for safety on crime the police covering Woodlands County reported from 2023 to 2025: #429 of 474 in Alberta. By contrast, recorded violent incidents ran at 12.1 per 1,000 residents a year and property crime at 44.0, against 12.9 and 31.2 in the typical town its size.
Statistics Canada, police-reported crime, 2023–2025 means. The index weighs each crime by its seriousness; rates are incidents per 1,000 residents a year. Source area for crime severity, crime rate and incident counts: the Whitecourt detachment area.
What stands out about safety in Woodlands County
Break and enter: high for a town its size
Woodlands County records 8.1 incidents of break and enter per 1,000 residents a year, against 2.8 in the typical town among Canadian towns of 2,500 to 10,000 people. By type ↓
A higher index than most towns its size
Line up the 40 Canadian towns nearest in size by their index and Woodlands County stands 37th, the lowest first. Towns its size ↓
Heavier on property and other crime
Woodlands County scores 106.4 for violence and 127.7 for other crime; the typical Canadian town its size scores 85.7 and 62.8. By type ↓
Close to Alberta’s typical town
Within Alberta, the median town comes to 110 on the index, against 120.9 in Woodlands County. Towns its size ↓
Written from Statistics Canada’s police-reported crime by police service and detachment, 2023–2025. Figures are what police recorded, not convictions.
What’s behind Woodlands County’s grade
How sure: A less certain grade than most, because the figures belong to the nearest detachment, 11 km from Woodlands County, not to the town.
The grade weighs the Crime Severity Index and its violent half, averaged over 2023–2025, against every Canadian town and city neighbourhood of 1,000 people or more.
Its place: #429 of 474 in Alberta and #2,281 of 2,572 Canadian towns.
The Crime Severity Index and its two halves, beside the typical figure for Canadian towns of 2,500 to 10,000 people.
Crime in Woodlands County, type by type
Against the typical town its size, Woodlands County runs highest on break and enter (8.1 per 1,000 against 2.8), motor vehicle theft (5.5 per 1,000 against 2.6) and mischief (6.3 per 1,000 against 4.9). Assault and theft under $5,000 sit below it.
Every Statistics Canada violation line
| Violation | Incidents a year | Per 1,000 | Cleared |
|---|---|---|---|
| Homicide | 0.3 | 0.08 | — |
| Sexual violations against children | 1.7 | 0.4 | — |
| Assaults against a peace officer | 0.3 | 0.08 | — |
| Firearms: use, discharge, pointing | 0.7 | 0.2 | — |
| Robbery | 0.7 | 0.2 | — |
| Forcible confinement or kidnapping | 0.3 | 0.08 | — |
| Other violent violations | 0 | 0 | — |
| Breaking and entering | 32 | 8.1 | 18% |
| Possession of stolen property | 19 | 4.8 | 25% |
| Theft of a motor vehicle | 21.7 | 5.5 | 9% |
| Theft over $5,000 | 16.7 | 4.2 | 2% |
| Theft under $5,000 | 35.3 | 8.9 | 3% |
| Mischief | 25 | 6.3 | 17% |
| Weapons violations | 5.7 | 1.4 | 88% |
| Administration of justice violations | 11 | 2.8 | 57% |
| Other Criminal Code violations | 6.3 | 1.6 | 11% |
| Drug violations | 4 | 1 | — |
| Impaired driving | 17.7 | 4.5 | 69% |
| Failing to stop or remain | 0 | 0 | — |
Statistics Canada’s violation groups for the whole police service or detachment, incidents a year its own. Cleared: incidents solved by a charge or otherwise, as a share of those reported.
Incidents per 1,000 residents a year, 2023–2025 means, against the typical figure for Canadian towns of 2,500 to 10,000 people.
Woodlands County comes 37th of the 40 towns nearest in size
| # | Town | People | Severity index | Violent index | Safety |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| 1 | Grand Valley Ontario | 4,759 | 26.4 | 20.7 | A+ |
| … | |||||
| 4 | Raymond Alberta | 4,594 | 36.6 | 46.2 | A |
| … | |||||
| 25 | Jasper Alberta | 4,627 | 67.7 | 60.8 | B− |
| … | |||||
| 32 | Barrhead Alberta | 4,768 | 81.9 | 73.6 | C |
| … | |||||
| 34 | Kindersley Saskatchewan | 4,740 | 95.9 | 83.7 | C− |
| 35 | Central Okanagan British Columbia | 4,784 | 106.7 | 102.5 | C− |
| 36 | Cardston County Alberta | 4,938 | 108 | 123.7 | C− |
| 37 | Woodlands County Alberta | 4,778 | 120.9 | 106.4 | D |
| 38 | St. Stephen New Brunswick | 4,876 | 143.6 | 115 | D |
| 39 | Flin Flon (Part) Manitoba | 4,732 | 332 | 605.3 | D− |
| 40 | Battleford Saskatchewan | 4,657 | 349.1 | 479.8 | D− |
The 40 Canadian towns of 2,500+ people closest in population; city neighbourhoods, city totals and reserves are left out. Towns on one police service or detachment share its index.
The Canadian towns closest to Woodlands County in population, the lowest Crime Severity Index first (2023–2025 means).
Around 48 violent incidents a year at the detachment nearest Woodlands County (4,010 residents), 2023–2025
Violent incidents per 1,000 a year, 2023–2025
Property crimes per 1,000 a year, 2023–2025
Statistics Canada counts actual incidents; those police record as unfounded are listed apart and kept out of its crime rates and severity index. Each incident is filed under its most serious violation, which the survey sets partly by the maximum penalty.
And about 170 property crimes, plus 61 other violations, a year (2023–2025 average). Each dot is one resident; each coloured dot, one incident a year at the area’s rates.
The index in Woodlands County, each year
Crime Severity Index
Its heaviest year fell in the middle, 2024, at 144.5; 2023 was the lightest, at 99.9. The comparison line, the typical Canadian town its size, runs from 74.3 in 2023 to 64.2 by 2025.
Every year as a table
| Year | Woodlands County | Typical town its size |
|---|---|---|
| 2025 | 118.3 | 64.2 |
| 2024 | 144.5 | 68.8 |
| 2023 | 99.9 | 74.3 |
Statistics Canada, Crime Severity Index by police service, each year as published. Typical: the median of Canadian towns of 2,500 to 10,000 people.
The Crime Severity Index of the police covering Woodlands County, each year, against the typical Canadian town its size.
Crime in the places around Woodlands County
| Town | People | Severity index | Violent index | Safety |
|---|---|---|---|---|
| Woodlands County | 4,778 | 120.9 | 106.4 | D |
| Whitecourt (9 km) | 10,708 | 146.3 | 128.4 | D |
| Mayerthorpe (32 km) | 1,419 | 178 | 232.8 | D |
| Yellowhead County (63 km) | 10,966 | 120 | 99.2 | D |
| Barrhead County No. 11 (66 km) | 6,186 | 81.9 | 73.6 | C |
| Swan Hills (68 km) | 1,430 | 194.9 | 106.8 | D |
2 of the 5 neighbours with their own figures score lower than Woodlands County. Closest is Yellowhead County, 63.5 km away, at 120 to 120.9 here.
Each place’s police figures, 2023–2025 means. No closer places have figures: these lie 9–68 km from Woodlands County.
What this data can and can’t tell you
- An index, not a verdict. The index weighs crimes rather than counting them: a serious offence moves it far more than a minor one. Statistics Canada is plain about its limits: “The CSI is not an indicator of overall safety and should be interpreted in the broader community context.”
- Small numbers. With roughly 4,012 residents in its police area, a few cases swing the figures. In Statistics Canada’s words, “Data for police services or detachments with populations less than 5,000 should be used with caution.”
- The index’s scale. Statistics Canada set the national index at 100 for 2006; every figure here is read against that.
- What clearance means. A cleared case is one police consider solved. Whether anyone is convicted is a separate matter the rate doesn’t follow.
Questions about safety in Woodlands County
Is Woodlands County safe?
Police-reported crime in Woodlands County scores 120.9 on Statistics Canada’s Crime Severity Index (2023–2025 mean), with 12.1 violent incidents and 44 property crimes per 1,000 residents a year. The typical figure for Canadian towns of 2,500 to 10,000 people is 68.5.
What is the most common crime in Woodlands County?
Top of the list is theft under $5,000 (8.9 per 1,000 residents a year); break and enter, at 8.1, and other Criminal Code offences, at 7.5, follow.
Is crime going up in Woodlands County?
Over 2023–2025 the index climbed 18%, to 118.3 from 99.9. A small or partial count makes this change uncertain.
How much of Woodlands County’s crime do police solve?
32%, by the weighted clearance rate, where the typical Canadian town its size manages 34%. Violent crime is cleared at 55% and non-violent crime at 21%.
Whose figures are these?
A shared service or detachment’s, reported as one for Woodlands County and everywhere else it polices.
Source: Statistics Canada, police-reported crime by police service and detachment, 2023–2025 (Statistics Canada Open Licence); TownRatings calculation.
Sources: Statistics Canada, Crime severity index and weighted clearance rates, police services (tables 35-10-0186 to 0190, 0061, 0063, 0064), 2023–2025 · Statistics Canada, Incident-based crime statistics by detailed violations, police services (35-10-0178 to 0185) · Safety Grade: TownRatings calculation. Under the Statistics Canada Open Licence.
Adapted from Statistics Canada (Census of Population 2021, population estimates 2025, 2021 census boundaries) under the Statistics Canada Open Licence; this does not constitute an endorsement by Statistics Canada. Neighbourhood names in some cities © OpenStreetMap contributors (ODbL).