Photo: Martin Bodman · CC BY-SA 2.0Per resident, Bow records less crime than 89% of UK towns
Of the 1,541 UK towns of 1,000 to 2,500 people, 79% record more crime per resident. Measured on crimes police recorded inside Bow’s built-up area between September 2023 and August 2026, it earns a Safety Grade of A. Out of every 1,000 residents, 11.7 violent and sexual offences and 5.5 incidents of burglary, vehicle crime and damage are reported annually.
Crimes and reports per 1,000 residents (Census 2021) a year, September 2023 to August 2026.
What stands out about safety in Bow
Less crime than many places its size
Of 1,214 UK towns of 1,000 to 2,000 people, Bow has the 277th lowest rate of graded crime: lower than Govilon, Heath and Reach and Pool-in-Wharfedale, higher than Bradwell, Nether Stowey and Scorton. Towns its size ↓
Written from the police.uk and government data on this page. Figures are crimes police recorded, not convictions.
What’s behind Bow’s grade
A fairly firm grade. Built on 55 graded crimes over three years. The grade adds violent and sexual offences and crimes against homes and vehicles per resident and ranks Bow against every UK town of 1,000 or more.
Per resident, against all UK towns; beside it, how it compares with towns its size.
Bow against towns its size
| # | Town | People | Violent | Homes & vehicles | Shops & theft | Safety |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| 1 | Clipsham Rutland | 1,150 | 0 | 0 | 0 | A+ |
| … | ||||||
| 16 | Exton Devon | 1,287 | 4.2 | 3.1 | 4.8 | A+ |
| … | ||||||
| 19 | Morchard Bishop Devon | 1,041 | 5.9 | 1.8 | 1 | A+ |
| … | ||||||
| 60 | Abbotskerswell Devon | 1,182 | 6.2 | 4.9 | 0.6 | A+ |
| … | ||||||
| 63 | Chillington Devon | 1,074 | 10.2 | 1 | 2 | A+ |
| … | ||||||
| 274 | Bradwell Derbyshire | 1,368 | 10.7 | 6.3 | 6.3 | A |
| 275 | Nether Stowey Somerset | 1,483 | 15.7 | 1.4 | 1.1 | A |
| 276 | Scorton North Yorkshire | 1,011 | 11.5 | 5.6 | 2.3 | A |
| 277 | Bow Devon | 1,122 | 11.7 | 5.5 | 1.9 | A |
| 278 | Whimple Devon | 1,120 | 9.7 | 7.5 | 1.6 | A |
| 279 | Aberford West Yorkshire | 1,551 | 10.8 | 6.5 | 3 | A |
| 280 | Bromham Wiltshire | 1,066 | 10.3 | 6.9 | 3.1 | A |
| … | ||||||
| 1214 | Ingoldmells Lincolnshire | 1,928 | 259 | 64.7 | 57.2 | 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 Bow, and others in Devon.
Crime in Bow 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 6 burglaries, vehicle crimes or acts of criminal damage, plus 0 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
Violence & sexual offences sits below it.
Show as a table
| Category | In the grade | Reports | Per 1,000 | Typical |
|---|---|---|---|---|
| Violence & sexual offences | Violent | 14 | 12.5 | 16.6 |
| Criminal damage & arson | Home & vehicle | 4 | 3.6 | 3.2 |
| Vehicle crime | Home & vehicle | 2 | 1.8 | 1.5 |
| Public order | not graded | 1 | 0.9 | 2.4 |
| Burglary | Home & vehicle | 1 | 0.9 | 1.6 |
| Anti-social behaviour | not graded | 1 | 0.9 | 5.3 |
| Shoplifting | not graded | 0 | 0 | 0 |
| Other theft | not graded | 0 | 0 | 2.5 |
| Drugs | not graded | 0 | 0 | 0.6 |
| Other crime | not graded | 0 | 0 | 1.1 |
| 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.
14 violent and sexual offences in the last 12 months, against 9 the year before
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).
No one died in a collision on Bow’s roads in 2021–2025
Police recorded 2 collisions with injuries inside Bow in five years. 0 people were killed or seriously injured.
Most UK towns of 1,000 to 2,500 people (94%) had no road deaths in these five years, and Bow is one of them.
Counting serious injuries too, a town of Bow’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; Bow had 0.
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 Bow’s built-up area, 2021–2025. Described here; not part of the Safety Grade.
Crime in the places around Bow
| Town | People | Violent | Homes & vehicles | Safety |
|---|---|---|---|---|
| Bow | 1,122 | 11.7 | 5.5 | A |
| Copplestone | 1,475 | 21.2 | 5.4 | B+ |
| North Tawton | 1,785 | 26.1 | 4.7 | B− |
| Morchard Bishop | 1,041 | 5.9 | 1.8 | A+ |
| Winkleigh | 1,342 | 16 | 6.5 | A− |
| Crediton | 7,971 | 39.3 | 12.2 | C− |
| Chulmleigh | 1,232 | 18.6 | 9.2 | B |
| Chagford | 1,107 | 12.2 | 3 | A |
Bow records more graded crime per resident than 2 of its 7 neighbours. Morchard Bishop, 4.8 miles away, records 5.9 violent and sexual offences per 1,000 residents a year (3-year average), against Bow’s 11.7.
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 Bow 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 Bow
Is Bow safe?
Police recorded 11.7 violent and sexual offences and 5.5 burglaries, vehicle crimes and acts of criminal damage per 1,000 residents a year over the three years to August 2026 (police.uk, inside Bow’s built-up area). That earns an A for safety: less crime per resident than 89% of UK towns. Among 1,214 UK towns of 1,000 to 2,000 people, Bow is 277th from the least crime.
Is crime going up in Bow?
Police recorded 14 violent and sexual offences in the 12 months to August 2026, against 9 in the 12 months before. With numbers this small, a few crimes change the rate a lot.
What is the most common crime in Bow?
Violence & sexual offences: 14 in the 12 months to August 2026, which in police.uk includes harassment, stalking and assault without injury. Next came criminal damage & arson (4) and vehicle crime (2), with 1 reports of anti-social behaviour.
How does Bow compare with Exeter?
Exeter records 47.6 violent and sexual offences and 14.5 crimes against homes and vehicles per 1,000 residents a year, against Bow’s 11.7 and 5.5, 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.