Photo: Dave Bevis · CC BY-SA 2.0Per resident, Somercotes and Swanwick records more violent crime than 86% of UK towns
For its size, it sits below 30% of the 645 UK towns of 10,000 to 50,000 people on crime per resident. In a usual year, 41.4 violent and sexual offences and 12.8 incidents of burglary, vehicle crime and damage are logged per 1,000 inhabitants. Scored on crimes police recorded inside Somercotes and Swanwick’s built-up area across September 2023 to August 2026, the town lands on C− for safety: #43 of 59 in Derbyshire. Recorded violence held steady in a year.
Crimes and reports per 1,000 residents (Census 2021) a year, September 2023 to August 2026.
What stands out about safety in Somercotes and Swanwick
More crime than many places its size
Of 321 UK towns of 11,000 to 20,000 people, Somercotes and Swanwick has the 240th lowest rate of graded crime: lower than Louth, Redruth and Yeadon, higher than Flint, Snodland and Scawthorpe and Cusworth. Towns its size ↓
Many neighbourhoods rank low for crime nationally
The government’s Indices of Deprivation 2025 rank every neighbourhood in England on recorded crime. 16% of Somercotes and Swanwick’s residents live in one of the lowest-crime 10%, and 6% in one of the highest-crime 20%. Neighbourhood ranks ↓
Written from the police.uk and government data on this page. Figures are crimes police recorded, not convictions.
What’s behind Somercotes and Swanwick’s grade
A firm grade. Built on 2,453 graded crimes over three years. The grade adds violent and sexual offences and crimes against homes and vehicles per resident and ranks Somercotes and Swanwick against every UK town of 1,000 or more.
Per resident, against all UK towns; beside it, how it compares with towns its size.
1 in 6 Somercotes and Swanwick residents lives in one of England’s lowest-crime neighbourhoods
16% of residents live in the lowest-crime 30% of England’s neighbourhoods, and 6% in the highest-crime 20%. The crime domain scores the risk of violence, burglary, theft and criminal damage where people live, so it can read differently from the town-wide rate, which counts crimes where they happened.
Somercotes and Swanwick’s residents by the crime decile of their neighbourhood (LSOA, about 1,500 people) in the English Indices of Deprivation 2025 (crime domain), where 1 is the highest-crime 10% of England’s neighbourhoods and 10 the lowest.
Somercotes and Swanwick against towns its size
| # | Town | People | Violent | Homes & vehicles | Shops & theft | Safety |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| 1 | Kesgrave Suffolk | 14,947 | 13 | 3.3 | 2.7 | A |
| … | ||||||
| 20 | Hadfield Derbyshire | 16,271 | 17.5 | 7.3 | 4.1 | B+ |
| … | ||||||
| 75 | Belper Derbyshire | 19,076 | 25.6 | 6.7 | 9 | B− |
| … | ||||||
| 116 | Glossop Derbyshire | 17,820 | 28.1 | 9.3 | 13.7 | C+ |
| … | ||||||
| 156 | Matlock Derbyshire | 11,990 | 33.1 | 8.7 | 12.8 | C |
| … | ||||||
| 237 | Flint Clwyd | 12,776 | 40 | 13.5 | 21.8 | C− |
| 238 | Snodland Kent | 11,820 | 32.7 | 21.2 | 18.1 | C− |
| 239 | Scawthorpe and Cusworth South Yorkshire | 13,020 | 35.2 | 19 | 19.9 | C− |
| 240 | Somercotes and Swanwick Derbyshire | 15,105 | 41.4 | 12.8 | 11.2 | C− |
| 241 | Rhosllannerchrugog Clwyd | 12,789 | 38.7 | 15.8 | 9.6 | C− |
| 242 | Rhondda Mid Glamorgan | 13,271 | 42.3 | 13 | 7.4 | C− |
| 243 | Litherland Merseyside | 18,752 | 42 | 13.5 | 8.8 | C− |
| … | ||||||
| 321 | Haverfordwest Dyfed | 12,088 | 91.4 | 28.6 | 32.3 | D− |
Safety letters rank against every UK town of 1,000 or more; the order here is context only.
Graded crime per 1,000 residents a year, September 2023 to August 2026, counting from the least: towns ranked near Somercotes and Swanwick, and others in Derbyshire.
Crime in Somercotes and Swanwick per 1,000 residents
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 13 burglaries, vehicle crimes or acts of criminal damage, plus 12 shoplifting and theft reports, in the 12 months to August 2026. Each dot is one resident; each coloured dot is one recorded crime.
What police recorded in the last 12 months
Against the typical town its size, Somercotes and Swanwick runs highest on burglary (3.3 per 1,000 against 2.4), public order (7.3 per 1,000 against 5.4) and violence & sexual offences (40.3 per 1,000 against 30.4). Vehicle crime sits below it.
Show as a table
| Category | In the grade | Reports | Per 1,000 | Typical |
|---|---|---|---|---|
| Violence & sexual offences | Violent | 609 | 40.3 | 30.4 |
| Anti-social behaviour | not graded | 204 | 13.5 | 12.4 |
| Public order | not graded | 111 | 7.3 | 5.4 |
| Criminal damage & arson | Home & vehicle | 103 | 6.8 | 6.2 |
| Shoplifting | not graded | 93 | 6.2 | 6.1 |
| Other theft | not graded | 74 | 4.9 | 4.4 |
| Burglary | Home & vehicle | 50 | 3.3 | 2.4 |
| Vehicle crime | Home & vehicle | 36 | 2.4 | 2.8 |
| Other crime | not graded | 33 | 2.2 | 1.8 |
| Drugs | not graded | 32 | 2.1 | 1.9 |
| Possession of weapons | Violent | 15 | 1 | 0.7 |
| Robbery | Violent | 11 | 0.7 | 0.5 |
| Theft from the person | not graded | 7 | 0.5 | 0.3 |
| Bicycle theft | not graded | 2 | 0.1 | 0.3 |
“Violent” is police.uk’s violence and sexual offences (which includes harassment, stalking and assault without injury), robbery and possession of weapons. Anti-social behaviour isn’t a crime category; shoplifting and other theft happen mostly in shops and town centres rather than to residents, so neither counts in the grade.
September 2025 to August 2026, per 1,000 residents. The tick on each bar is the typical (median) town among UK towns of 10,000 to 50,000 people.
Police name a suspect about as often as across UK towns
No suspect was identified for 66% of Somercotes and Swanwick’s burglaries, vehicle crimes and criminal damage, against 69% across UK towns, and for 11% of violent and sexual offences against 19%. Most violent cases close as “unable to prosecute” (62% here), usually because the victim doesn’t support a prosecution. About 11% of violent and 4% of household crimes reached court.
The latest outcome police.uk shows for each crime recorded in the first of the three years (September 2023 to August 2024), so most cases have closed. 799 crimes.
Lowest recorded crime in Swanwick, Ironville and Riddings and Somercotes; highest in Somercotes
| Ward | Residents | Violent | Homes & vehicles | |
|---|---|---|---|---|
| Swanwick | 5,080 | 23.6 | 5.1 | |
| Ironville and Riddings | 4,122 | 43.6 | 11 | |
| Somercotes | 5,903 | 55.1 | 20.6 |
A ward’s rate counts crimes where they happened, not where victims live, so Somercotes records 1.7× the violent crime per resident of the rest of Somercotes and Swanwick.
Crimes per 1,000 residents a year by council ward (the part of each ward inside Somercotes and Swanwick’s built-up area), September 2023 to August 2026.
How crime in Somercotes and Swanwick has moved
“Towns its size” pools all UK towns of 10,000 to 50,000 people that police.uk covers each month (Greater Manchester has no data).
Rolling six-month rate, per 1,000 residents a year (longer windows for smaller places, where a few crimes swing a month). In the 12 months to August 2026 against the 12 before: violent +2% (towns its size +1%), homes and vehicles -10% (towns its size -2%), shoplifting and theft +8% (towns its size +1%), anti-social behaviour +17% (towns its size -4%).
Two people died in collisions on Somercotes and Swanwick’s roads in 2021–2025
Police recorded 108 collisions with injuries inside Somercotes and Swanwick in five years, in which two people died (1 was a pedestrian). 25 people were killed or seriously injured: 6 on foot and 3 on a bicycle.
That is about what is typical for UK towns of 10,000 to 50,000 people: at their median rate (0.9 deaths per 100,000 residents a year), a town of Somercotes and Swanwick’s size would see about 1 in five years. With numbers this small, a death or two either way changes the picture, so Somercotes and Swanwick’s own rate (2.7) is context, not a ranking.
Counting serious injuries too, Somercotes and Swanwick had 32.8 people killed or seriously injured per 100,000 residents a year, above the median for UK towns of 10,000 to 50,000 people (23.8).
Casualties are counted where the collision happened, not where people lived: a main road through town adds through-traffic, and residents’ own risk on roads elsewhere isn’t here. Seriously injured uses the Department for Transport’s adjusted figures, which even out the police forces’ different ways of recording injuries. There’s no national rate here: more than half of road deaths in England and Wales (58%) happen outside every town’s built-up area. Source: DfT road casualty statistics (STATS19), 2021–2025.
Collisions police recorded inside Somercotes and Swanwick’s built-up area, 2021–2025. Described here; not part of the Safety Grade.
Crime in the places around Somercotes and Swanwick
| Town | People | Violent | Homes & vehicles | Safety |
|---|---|---|---|---|
| Somercotes and Swanwick | 15,105 | 41.4 | 12.8 | C− |
| Alfreton | 8,790 | 57 | 17.2 | D |
| Ironville | 1,824 | 51.4 | 16.8 | D |
| Ripley | 20,191 | 52.3 | 13.8 | D |
| Jacksdale and Westwood | 2,758 | 19.7 | 8.6 | B |
| South Normanton and Pinxton | 16,028 | 33.1 | 12.9 | C |
| South Wingfield | 1,079 | 28.4 | 4.3 | B− |
| Selston | 6,278 | 23.7 | 9.7 | B− |
Somercotes and Swanwick records more graded crime per resident than 4 of its 7 neighbours. Jacksdale and Westwood, 2.1 miles away, records 19.7 violent and sexual offences per 1,000 residents a year (3-year average), against Somercotes and Swanwick’s 41.4.
Per 1,000 residents a year, the same three years. Tap a town for its safety page.
What this data can and can’t tell you
- Where crimes happen, not where victims live. police.uk places each crime at a point near where it happened. Town centres with shops, stations, a hospital and nightlife record more crime per resident, and residents of nearby villages who come in to shop or go out are part of that count.
- Bigger towns record more per resident. Across UK towns, recorded crime per resident rises steeply with size, more than in the U.S., so a city’s grade sits low against the whole UK. The “towns its size” figures show where Somercotes and Swanwick sits among towns like it; they are context and don’t change the grade.
- Points are approximate. police.uk moves each point to the nearest of a set of anonymous map points, so crimes near the edge of the built-up area can fall either side of it.
Questions about safety in Somercotes and Swanwick
Is Somercotes and Swanwick safe?
Police recorded 41.4 violent and sexual offences and 12.8 burglaries, vehicle crimes and acts of criminal damage per 1,000 residents a year over the three years to August 2026 (police.uk, inside Somercotes and Swanwick’s built-up area). That earns a C− for safety: less crime per resident than 17% of UK towns. Among 321 UK towns of 11,000 to 20,000 people, Somercotes and Swanwick is 240th from the least crime. 16% of residents live in neighbourhoods in England’s lowest-crime 10%.
What are the safest areas of Somercotes and Swanwick?
By council ward, Swanwick, Ironville and Riddings and Somercotes record the least violent and household crime per resident: 23.6, 43.6 and 55.1 violent and sexual offences per 1,000 a year (3-year average), against 55.1 in Somercotes.
Is crime going up in Somercotes and Swanwick?
In the 12 months to August 2026, against the 12 months before, violent crime held steady, burglary, vehicle crime and damage fell 10%, shoplifting and theft rose 8% and anti-social behaviour rose 17%. Across UK towns of 10,000 to 50,000 people, violent crime held steady.
What is the most common crime in Somercotes and Swanwick?
Violence & sexual offences: 609 in the 12 months to August 2026, which in police.uk includes harassment, stalking and assault without injury. Next came public order (111) and criminal damage & arson (103), with 204 reports of anti-social behaviour.
How does Somercotes and Swanwick compare with Heanor?
Heanor records 45.3 violent and sexual offences and 16 crimes against homes and vehicles per 1,000 residents a year, against Somercotes and Swanwick’s 41.4 and 12.8, over the same three years.
Sources: data.police.uk street-level crime, 36 months to August 2026, points inside the built-up-area boundary · ONS Census 2021, output areas summed to the ONS 2022 built-up area · MHCLG English Indices of Deprivation 2025, crime domain by LSOA (residents from ONS Census 2021) · Department for Transport road casualty statistics (STATS19), collisions 2021–2025, points inside the built-up-area boundary · TownRatings grades: our own summary of the data, ranked against UK towns only. All under the Open Government Licence v3.0.
Contains public sector information licensed under the Open Government Licence v3.0. Contains HM Land Registry data © Crown copyright and database right 2026. Contains OS data © Crown copyright and database right 2026 (ONS boundaries). Northern Ireland: Source: NISRA; contains Land & Property Services data and Ordnance Survey of Northern Ireland information, © Crown copyright, licensed under the Open Government Licence v3.0. Scotland: contains National Records of Scotland data, Registers of Scotland data and SEPA data, © Crown copyright / © SEPA 2025, licensed under the Open Government Licence v3.0.