Photo: Earth Science and Remote Sensing Unit , Lyndon B. Johnson Space Center · Public domainPictou County, Subdivision A records more crime per resident than 70% of Canadian towns
Of the two halves, violence comes to 99.7 and other offences to 78.3, beside norms of 85.7 and 62.8. Measured on crime the police covering Pictou County, Subdivision A reported between 2023 and 2025, it earns a Safety Grade of C: #68 of 88 in Nova Scotia. None of the 4 towns next door with figures records less crime per resident. Per 1,000 residents a year, 16.5 violent incidents and 29.8 incidents of property crime were recorded, 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. The crime severity, crime rate and incident counts numbers here cover the Pictou County detachment area.
What stands out about safety in Pictou County, Subdivision A
Higher than many towns its size
Counting up from the lowest index, Pictou County, Subdivision A is 30th of the 40 Canadian towns closest in population. Towns its size ↓
Mischief: high for a town its size
Pictou County, Subdivision A records 8.7 incidents of mischief per 1,000 residents a year, against 4.9 in the typical town among Canadian towns of 2,500 to 10,000 people. By type ↓
Much like Nova Scotia’s towns
Set among Nova Scotia’s towns, whose median is 71.4, Pictou County, Subdivision A scores 83.9. 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.
The grade: C for Pictou County, Subdivision A
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: #68 of 88 in Nova Scotia and #1,764 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 Pictou County, Subdivision A, type by type
Against the typical town its size, Pictou County, Subdivision A runs highest on mischief (8.7 per 1,000 against 4.9) and break and enter (4.2 per 1,000 against 2.8). Theft under $5,000 sits below it.
Every Statistics Canada violation line
| Violation | Incidents a year | Per 1,000 | Cleared |
|---|---|---|---|
| Homicide | 1 | 0.05 | — |
| Sexual violations against children | 7.3 | 0.3 | 51% |
| Assaults against a peace officer | 14 | 0.6 | 84% |
| Firearms: use, discharge, pointing | 2 | 0.09 | — |
| Robbery | 2.3 | 0.1 | — |
| Forcible confinement or kidnapping | 1 | 0.05 | — |
| Other violent violations | 8.3 | 0.4 | 24% |
| Breaking and entering | 93.7 | 4.2 | 13% |
| Possession of stolen property | 22.7 | 1 | 32% |
| Theft of a motor vehicle | 52.3 | 2.4 | 12% |
| Theft over $5,000 | 19.3 | 0.9 | 7% |
| Theft under $5,000 | 155 | 7 | 7% |
| Mischief | 194 | 8.7 | 12% |
| Weapons violations | 11 | 0.5 | 66% |
| Administration of justice violations | 97.3 | 4.4 | 54% |
| Other Criminal Code violations | 25.3 | 1.1 | 28% |
| Drug violations | 17.3 | 0.8 | 40% |
| Impaired driving | 82.7 | 3.7 | 40% |
| Failing to stop or remain | 0.7 | 0.03 | — |
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.
By its index, Pictou County, Subdivision A stands 30th of 40 towns its size
| # | Town | People | Severity index | Violent index | Safety |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| 1 | Beresford New Brunswick | 6,543 | 25 | 35.4 | A+ |
| … | |||||
| 22 | Antigonish County, Subdivision B Nova Scotia | 6,486 | 66.6 | 81.7 | B− |
| … | |||||
| 25 | Kings County, Subdivision D Nova Scotia | 6,517 | 72.3 | 91.5 | C+ |
| … | |||||
| 27 | Bay Roberts Newfoundland and Labrador | 6,407 | 74.1 | 64.3 | C+ |
| 28 | Barrington Nova Scotia | 6,720 | 76.1 | 96.9 | C+ |
| 29 | Electoral Area C, Peace River British Columbia | 6,344 | 81.8 | 82.5 | C |
| 30 | Pictou County, Subdivision A Nova Scotia | 6,575 | 83.9 | 99.7 | C |
| 31 | Pictou County, Subdivision B Nova Scotia | 6,482 | 83.9 | 99.7 | C |
| 32 | Rhineland Manitoba | 6,819 | 85.4 | 94.1 | C |
| 33 | Sackville New Brunswick | 6,572 | 86.9 | 110.4 | C |
| … | |||||
| 35 | Annapolis County, Subdivision A Nova Scotia | 6,719 | 96 | 107.6 | C− |
| … | |||||
| 40 | St. Paul County No. 19 Alberta | 6,462 | 352.9 | 639.7 | 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 Pictou County, Subdivision A in population, the lowest Crime Severity Index first (2023–2025 means).
About 370 violent incidents a year across the police area of 22,300 residents that includes Pictou County, Subdivision A, 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 660 property crimes, plus 370 other violations, a year (2023–2025 average). Each dot is one resident; each coloured dot, one incident a year at the area’s rates.
From 2023 to 2025, Pictou County, Subdivision A’s index held steady
Crime Severity Index
The first year, 2023, was the heaviest at 86.6, and 2024 the lightest at 82.3. In the same years the typical Canadian town its size read 74.3 (2023), then 64.2 (2025).
Every year as a table
| Year | Pictou County, Subdivision A | Typical town its size |
|---|---|---|
| 2025 | 82.8 | 64.2 |
| 2024 | 82.3 | 68.8 |
| 2023 | 86.6 | 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 Pictou County, Subdivision A, each year, against the typical Canadian town its size.
Crime in the places around Pictou County, Subdivision A
| Town | People | Severity index | Violent index | Safety |
|---|---|---|---|---|
| Pictou County, Subdivision A | 6,575 | 83.9 | 99.7 | C |
| Pictou | 3,307 | 126.6 | 152.7 | D |
| Westville | 3,731 | 84.1 | 65 | C |
| Pictou County, Subdivision B | 6,482 | 83.9 | 99.7 | C |
| New Glasgow | 10,378 | 128.5 | 146.4 | D |
| Trenton | 2,499 | 83.9 | 99.7 | C |
| Stellarton | 4,251 | 116.6 | 97.1 | C− |
The places around Pictou County, Subdivision A all score higher on the index. 2 neighbours report through the same police, so their figure is this one and they aren’t compared.
Each place’s police figures, 2023–2025 means.
What this data can and can’t tell you
- The index’s scale. Figures are relative to one fixed point, Canada in 2006 at 100, rather than to this year’s national number.
- What clearance means. Cleared means solved by police, charged or not; it says nothing about what courts decide.
- An index, not a verdict. Statistics Canada, which publishes the index, attaches a caution: “The CSI is not an indicator of overall safety and should be interpreted in the broader community context.” The number weighs each reported crime by its seriousness before dividing by residents.
- Shared with the countryside. The detachment counts crime across its whole territory, of which Pictou County, Subdivision A is one part.
Questions about safety in Pictou County, Subdivision A
Is Pictou County, Subdivision A safe?
Its police recorded 16.5 violent incidents and 29.8 property crimes a year per 1,000 residents over 2023–2025, which gives Pictou County, Subdivision A a Crime Severity Index of 83.9. Across Canadian towns of 2,500 to 10,000 people, the median is 68.5.
What is the most common crime in Pictou County, Subdivision A?
Most often it is other Criminal Code offences: 8.8 per 1,000 residents a year. Next come mischief at 8.7 and assault at 7.2.
Is crime going up in Pictou County, Subdivision A?
Barely: 86.6 in 2023, 82.8 in 2025.
How much of Pictou County, Subdivision A’s crime do police solve?
Police cleared 26% of crime once each incident is weighted by seriousness: 45% of violent crime and 17% of the rest, against 34% for the typical Canadian town its size.
Whose figures are these?
A police service or detachment that covers Pictou County, Subdivision A and other places, so the figures are shared.
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).