Photo: 瑞丽江的河水 · CC BY-SA 4.0New Ross trails 79% of the 40 Irish towns closest in size on crime per resident
Per resident, the graded crimes were up 19% from 2016 to 2025. Scored on incidents the Gardaí recorded in the station areas where New Ross’s residents live across 2023 to 2025, the town lands on C− for safety: #3 of 5 in Co. Wexford. What’s more, its police logs show 7.9 violent incidents and 8.2 incidents of burglary and damage per 1,000 residents a year, while in the typical town its size the numbers are 5.7 and 6.1. The local rate of violence, burglary and damage is 16.1 per 1,000 residents a year; for Ireland it is 11.9.
Incidents per 1,000 residents (Census 2022) a year, 2023–2025 average, in the Garda station areas residents live in. Homicide and sexual offences aren’t published by station, so no figure here includes them.
What stands out about safety in New Ross
Garda checks weigh heavily here
Dangerous driving, drugs, road traffic and offences against justice outweigh the rest in New Ross’s station areas. They count Garda checks more than victims (a camera, a checkpoint, a festival), so they’re shown but not graded. By type ↓
More crime than many places its size
Among the 40 Irish towns closest in size, New Ross ranks 32nd, counting from the least graded crime: lower than Finglas North, Dubber and Cherry Orchard, higher than Farranshone, Youghal and Hollyhill and Ballincolly. Towns its size ↓
Above the Irish rate
The station areas New Ross’s residents live in record 16.1 incidents of violence, burglary and damage per 1,000 residents a year (2023–2025), against 11.9 across Ireland: 1.4 times the national rate. Safety Grade ↓
More recorded than in 2016
The Gardaí recorded 13.8 incidents of violence, burglary and damage per 1,000 of New Ross’s residents in 2016 and 16.3 in 2025. Across Ireland the rate went from 12 to 11.6. Year by year ↓
Written from CSO’s recorded crime by Garda station (CJA11) and Census 2022. Figures are incidents the Gardaí recorded, not convictions.
Inside New Ross’s C− for safety
How sure: The rate comes from Garda station areas, shared out by where residents live, not from crime inside the town’s own boundary.
The grade counts assaults and harassment, kidnapping, robbery, weapons offences, burglary and damage per resident, averaged over three years, and places the town among every Irish town and city neighbourhood of 1,000 people or more (the five city totals aren’t in it).
Its place: #3 of 5 in Co. Wexford and #221 of 320 Irish towns.
Violent crime, burglary and damage the Gardaí recorded per resident, 2023–2025, against Irish towns of 1,000 people or more.
New Ross, year by year
Violent · per 1,000 residents
Burglary & damage · per 1,000 residents
Its highest year was 2024, at 17.2 per 1,000 residents, and its lowest 2021, at 12.7. Across Ireland the same rate went from 12 in 2016 to 11.6 in 2025.
Every year as a table
| Year | Violent | Burglary & damage | Graded | Ireland | All recorded crime |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| 2025 | 8 | 8.4 | 16.3 | 11.6 | 70.9 |
| 2024 | 8.2 | 9 | 17.2 | 12.1 | 68.7 |
| 2023 | 7.6 | 7 | 14.6 | 11.9 | 56.7 |
| 2022 | 7.1 | 7.8 | 15 | 11.6 | 61.7 |
| 2021 | 3.8 | 8.9 | 12.7 | 10.2 | 69.2 |
| 2020 | 5.1 | 7.7 | 12.8 | 10.6 | 74.2 |
| 2019 | 3.5 | 9.3 | 12.8 | 12.8 | 61.3 |
| 2018 | 4.4 | 9.6 | 14 | 12.4 | 73.1 |
| 2017 | 5.4 | 10.1 | 15.4 | 12.8 | 88.1 |
| 2016 | 4.8 | 9 | 13.8 | 12 | 70.6 |
CSO CJA11, recorded crime incidents by Garda station, 2016–2025, shared to the town by where its residents live. Every year is divided by the residents counted in 2022, so the line moves with recorded crime, not with population. CSO publishes recorded crime “under reservation”, its flag on the quality of Garda recording.
Violence, burglary and damage the Gardaí recorded each year in the station areas where New Ross’s residents live, per 1,000 residents, against Ireland as a whole.
New Ross against towns its size
| # | Town | People | Violent | Burglary & damage | Safety |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| 1 | Frankfield and Grange Cork | 7,687 | 2.6 | 2.7 | A |
| … | |||||
| 29 | Farranshone Limerick | 7,874 | 6.2 | 9.1 | C− |
| 30 | Youghal Cork | 8,564 | 9.3 | 6 | C− |
| 31 | Hollyhill and Ballincolly Cork | 8,606 | 8.6 | 7 | C− |
| 32 | New Ross Wexford | 8,610 | 7.9 | 8.2 | C− |
| 33 | Finglas North Dublin | 9,805 | 8 | 10.3 | C− |
| 34 | Dubber Dublin | 7,941 | 8.2 | 10.4 | D |
| 35 | Cherry Orchard Dublin | 8,280 | 9.5 | 10.5 | D |
| … | |||||
| 40 | Grand Canal Dock Dublin | 8,320 | 43.1 | 32.1 | D− |
The 40 Irish towns and city neighbourhoods of 2,500+ people closest in population; the city totals are left out. Graded crime: violent crime, burglary and damage.
Graded crime per 1,000 residents a year, 2023 to 2025, counting from the least: towns ranked near New Ross, and others in Co. Wexford.
What was recorded, by type
Against the typical town its size, New Ross runs highest on assaults and harassment (7.2 per 1,000 against 4.8), public order offences (7.3 per 1,000 against 5) and damage to property (6.1 per 1,000 against 4.4). Theft sits below it.
Show as a table
| Category | In the grade | Per 1,000 | Typical |
|---|---|---|---|
| Dangerous or negligent acts | not graded | 15.6 | 5.3 |
| Road and traffic offences | not graded | 11.1 | 9.3 |
| Theft | not graded | 9.1 | 11.6 |
| Public order offences | not graded | 7.3 | 5 |
| Assaults and harassment | Violent | 7.2 | 4.8 |
| Damage to property | Burglary & damage | 6.1 | 4.4 |
| Drug offences | not graded | 4.5 | 3.1 |
| Burglary | Burglary & damage | 2.1 | 1.8 |
| Offences against justice | not graded | 1.6 | 1.5 |
| Weapons and explosives | Violent | 0.5 | 0.5 |
| Robbery, extortion and hijacking | Violent | 0.2 | 0.4 |
| Other offences | not graded | 0.2 | 0.3 |
| Kidnapping | Violent | 0 | 0 |
The groups are CSO’s. Dangerous or negligent acts, drug offences, road and traffic offences and offences against justice count Garda checks more than victims; they, theft, public order and other offences are shown but not graded. Homicide and sexual offences aren’t published by station; fraud is left out.
Per 1,000 residents a year, 2023–2025 average. The tick on each bar is the typical (median) town among Irish towns of 2,500 to 10,000 people.
About 8 in 1,000: recorded violent incidents a year
Violence per 1,000 residents a year, 2023–2025
Burglary & damage per 1,000 residents a year, 2023–2025
A crime isn’t a victim: one person can report several, and crimes in a town centre often involve visitors rather than residents.
And about 8 burglaries or acts of criminal damage, plus 9 thefts, a year (2023–2025 average). Each dot is one resident; each coloured dot is one recorded incident.
Crime in the places around New Ross
| Town | People | Violent | Burglary & damage | Safety |
|---|---|---|---|---|
| New Ross | 8,610 | 7.9 | 8.2 | C− |
| Graiguenamanagh-Tinnahinch | 1,506 | 2.5 | 1.8 | A+ |
| Ferrybank | 5,766 | 5.2 | 5.1 | B− |
| Waterford City Centre | 9,031 | 10.6 | 9.7 | D |
| Grantstown and Ballinakill | 9,571 | 10.6 | 9.7 | D |
| Grange Upper | 2,510 | 10.6 | 9.7 | D |
New Ross records more graded crime per resident than 2 of its 5 neighbours. Graiguenamanagh-Tinnahinch, 16.7 km away, records 2.5 recorded violent incidents per 1,000 residents a year (3-year average), against New Ross’s 7.9.
Per 1,000 residents a year, the same three-year average. Tap a town for its safety page.
What this data can and can’t tell you
- Station areas, not the town’s boundary. Crime is published by Garda station. Each station’s incidents are divided by the people living in its area (Census 2022), and New Ross takes the rates of the areas its residents live in, weighted by how many live in each.
- Checks are shown, not graded. Road traffic, dangerous driving, drug and justice offences mostly record Garda activity: one rural station can book thousands of camera detections. The grade leaves them out, with theft and public order, and counts violence, burglary and damage.
- Each year, and one average. CSO publishes crime by station once a year. The chart follows every year since 2016; the grade averages 2023, 2024 and 2025, because a small station area’s count swings from year to year. There are no months.
- No streets. No street- or ward-level crime is published in Ireland: the finest grain is the Garda station area.
Questions about safety in New Ross
Is New Ross safe?
The Gardaí recorded about 7.9 violent incidents and 8.2 burglaries or acts of criminal damage per 1,000 residents a year in the station areas New Ross’s residents live in, averaged over 2023–2025. That earns a C− for safety: more crime per resident than 79% of Irish towns.
What is the most common crime in New Ross?
Dangerous or negligent acts: about 134 a year (2023–2025 average). Next came road and traffic offences (96) and theft (78). That is mostly Garda enforcement (road checks and the like), not crime against residents, and it isn’t graded.
Is crime going up in New Ross?
The recorded rate in the graded categories rose 19% from 2016 to 2025: 13.8 per 1,000 residents in 2016, 16.3 in 2025. The grade uses the three-year average, so one unusual year moves it less.
How does New Ross compare with Ireland as a whole?
The station areas New Ross’s residents live in record 16.1 incidents of violence, burglary and damage per 1,000 residents a year (2023–2025). Across Ireland the figure is 11.9.
Is New Ross safer than the towns around it?
2 of the 5 neighbouring towns with figures record less violence, burglary and damage per resident than New Ross (16.1 per 1,000 a year). The lowest is Graiguenamanagh-Tinnahinch, at 4.3.
How sure is New Ross’s Safety Grade?
The rate comes from Garda station areas, shared out by where residents live, not from crime inside the town’s own boundary.
Source: CSO, Recorded crime incidents by Garda station (CJA11), 2023–2025, and Census 2022 (CC BY 4.0); TownRatings calculation.
Sources: CSO, Recorded crime incidents by Garda station (CJA11), 2023–2025 · CSO, Census 2022 Small Areas and the 2011 Garda sub-districts · Safety Grade: TownRatings calculation. Under Creative Commons Attribution 4.0 (CC BY 4.0).
Contains Central Statistics Office (CSO) data, Census 2022, and Tailte Éireann boundaries (CSO Urban Areas, Small Areas, local electoral areas, constituencies), under Creative Commons Attribution 4.0 (CC BY 4.0).