Photo: Derek Harper · CC BY-SA 2.0On violent crime, Bere Alston has a lower rate per resident than 69% of UK towns
Its letter overall is B: close to the middle of UK towns, from crimes police recorded inside its built-up area through September 2023 to August 2026. Each year brought 17.4 violent and sexual offences and 11.8 incidents of burglary, vehicle crime and damage for every 1,000 residents. Violent crime was up 21% in a year. Criminal damage & arson: police recorded 14 in Bere Alston in the 12 months to August 2026, 6.2 per 1,000 residents against 3.2 in a typical town its size.
Crimes and reports per 1,000 residents (Census 2021) a year, September 2023 to August 2026.
What stands out about safety in Bere Alston
Violent crime rose over the year
In the 12 months to August 2026 police recorded 21% more violent crime per resident in Bere Alston than in the year before; across UK towns of 1,000 to 2,500 people violent crime held steady. Trend ↓
About the middle for a village its size
Of 550 UK towns of 2,000 to 3,000 people, Bere Alston has the 293rd lowest rate of graded crime: lower than Ixworth, Mere and Newport, higher than Tanyfron, Barrow upon Humber and Mullion. Towns its size ↓
Written from the police.uk and government data on this page. Figures are crimes police recorded, not convictions.
What’s behind Bere Alston’s grade
A fairly firm grade. Built on 195 graded crimes over three years. The grade adds violent and sexual offences and crimes against homes and vehicles per resident and ranks Bere Alston against every UK town of 1,000 or more.
Per resident, against all UK towns; beside it, how it compares with towns its size.
How crime in Bere Alston has moved
Devon & Cornwall Police published three months short or not at all (Sep 2023, Oct 2023 and Nov 2023), so the line breaks there and those months are left out of the rates. “Towns its size” pools all UK towns of 1,000 to 2,500 people that police.uk covers each month (Greater Manchester has no data).
Rolling twelve-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 +21% (towns its size +3%), homes and vehicles -26% (towns its size +0%).
What police recorded in the last 12 months
Against the typical town its size, Bere Alston runs highest on criminal damage & arson (6.2 per 1,000 against 3.2) and violence & sexual offences (23 per 1,000 against 16.6).
Show as a table
| Category | In the grade | Reports | Per 1,000 | Typical |
|---|---|---|---|---|
| Violence & sexual offences | Violent | 52 | 23 | 16.6 |
| Criminal damage & arson | Home & vehicle | 14 | 6.2 | 3.2 |
| Burglary | Home & vehicle | 7 | 3.1 | 1.6 |
| Public order | not graded | 6 | 2.7 | 2.4 |
| Anti-social behaviour | not graded | 6 | 2.7 | 5.3 |
| Other theft | not graded | 5 | 2.2 | 2.5 |
| Other crime | not graded | 4 | 1.8 | 1.1 |
| Drugs | not graded | 2 | 0.9 | 0.6 |
| Vehicle crime | Home & vehicle | 2 | 0.9 | 1.5 |
| Shoplifting | not graded | 0 | 0 | 0 |
| Bicycle theft | not graded | 0 | 0 | 0 |
| Possession of weapons | Violent | 0 | 0 | 0 |
| Robbery | Violent | 0 | 0 | 0 |
| Theft from the person | not graded | 0 | 0 | 0 |
“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 1,000 to 2,500 people.
Crime in Bere Alston 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 10 burglaries, vehicle crimes or acts of criminal damage, plus 2 shoplifting and theft reports, in the 12 months to August 2026. Each dot is one resident; each coloured dot is one recorded crime.
Of 550 towns its size, Bere Alston is 293rd from the least graded crime
| # | Town | People | Violent | Homes & vehicles | Shops & theft | Safety |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| 1 | Richhill Armagh City, Banbridge and Craigavon | 2,738 | 6.2 | 2.8 | 3 | A+ |
| … | ||||||
| 18 | Yealmpton Devon | 2,007 | 8.3 | 3.8 | 3.1 | A+ |
| … | ||||||
| 30 | Bishopsteignton Devon | 2,271 | 10.4 | 4 | 2.6 | A |
| … | ||||||
| 52 | Ipplepen Devon | 2,150 | 10.6 | 5.6 | 4.4 | A |
| … | ||||||
| 72 | Landkey Devon | 2,001 | 13.3 | 4 | 2.7 | A |
| … | ||||||
| 290 | Tanyfron Clwyd | 2,229 | 20.3 | 8.5 | 2.1 | B |
| 291 | Barrow upon Humber Lincolnshire | 2,843 | 21.1 | 8 | 2.2 | B |
| 292 | Mullion Cornwall | 2,148 | 22.2 | 6.9 | 3.7 | B |
| 293 | Bere Alston Devon | 2,259 | 17.4 | 11.8 | 3.1 | B |
| 294 | Ellistown Leicestershire | 2,971 | 20.4 | 8.8 | 9.7 | B |
| 295 | Crickhowell Powys | 2,108 | 23.3 | 5.9 | 3.2 | B |
| 296 | Hibaldstow Lincolnshire | 2,022 | 21.8 | 7.4 | 8.1 | B |
| … | ||||||
| 550 | Avonmouth Bristol | 2,643 | 82.9 | 54.6 | 60.4 | 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 Bere Alston, and others in Devon.
No one died in a collision on Bere Alston’s roads in 2021–2025
Police recorded 1 collision with injuries inside Bere Alston in five years. 1 person was killed or seriously injured: 0 on foot and 0 on a bicycle.
Most UK towns of 1,000 to 2,500 people (94%) had no road deaths in these five years, and Bere Alston is one of them.
Counting serious injuries too, a town of Bere Alston’s size at the median for UK towns of 1,000 to 2,500 people would see about 1 people killed or seriously injured in five years; Bere Alston had 1.
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 Bere Alston’s built-up area, 2021–2025. Described here; not part of the Safety Grade.
Crime in the places around Bere Alston
| Town | People | Violent | Homes & vehicles | Safety |
|---|---|---|---|---|
| Bere Alston | 2,259 | 17.4 | 11.8 | B |
| Gunnislake and St Ann's Chapel | 3,506 | 20.7 | 6.4 | B |
| Horrabridge | 1,875 | 21.5 | 5.8 | B |
| Yelverton | 1,856 | 14.7 | 4.9 | A− |
| Tavistock | 12,676 | 27.9 | 9.1 | C+ |
| Saltash | 15,433 | 28.3 | 10.8 | C+ |
| Callington | 4,665 | 36.9 | 11.9 | C− |
| Landrake | 1,104 | 9.6 | 4 | A+ |
Bere Alston records more graded crime per resident than 4 of its 7 neighbours. Gunnislake and St Ann's Chapel, 3.2 miles away, records 20.7 violent and sexual offences per 1,000 residents a year (3-year average), against Bere Alston’s 17.4.
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
- Some months are short. Devon & Cornwall Police published September 2023, October 2023 and November 2023 only in part or not at all. Those months are left out of the rates, which average the months that were published in full; the raw counts include what was published.
- 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 Bere Alston 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 Bere Alston
Is Bere Alston safe?
Police recorded 17.4 violent and sexual offences and 11.8 burglaries, vehicle crimes and acts of criminal damage per 1,000 residents a year over the three years to August 2026 (police.uk, inside Bere Alston’s built-up area). That earns a B for safety: less crime per resident than 58% of UK towns. Among 550 UK towns of 2,000 to 3,000 people, Bere Alston is 293rd from the least crime.
Is crime going up in Bere Alston?
In the 12 months to August 2026, against the 12 months before, violent crime rose 21%, burglary, vehicle crime and damage fell 26%, shoplifting and theft fell 38% and anti-social behaviour fell 57%. Across UK towns of 1,000 to 2,500 people, violent crime held steady.
What is the most common crime in Bere Alston?
Violence & sexual offences: 52 in the 12 months to August 2026, which in police.uk includes harassment, stalking and assault without injury. Next came criminal damage & arson (14) and burglary (7), with 6 reports of anti-social behaviour.
How does Bere Alston compare with Plymouth?
Plymouth records 49.4 violent and sexual offences and 14.9 crimes against homes and vehicles per 1,000 residents a year, against Bere Alston’s 17.4 and 11.8, 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.