Photo: Jaggery · CC BY-SA 2.0Machen records public order at 3.3 times the rate of a typical town its size
In sum, crimes police recorded inside its built-up area from September 2023 to August 2026 put Machen at B: close to the middle of UK towns. Police recorded 16 cases of public order locally in the 12 months to August 2026, a rate of 8.1 per 1,000 against a typical 2.4. For every 50 residents, about one violent or sexual offence is recorded 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 Machen
More crime than many places its size
Of 1,764 UK towns of 1,000 to 3,000 people, Machen has the 1,082nd lowest rate of graded crime: lower than Mullion, Bere Alston and Netherne on-the-Hill, higher than Westbourne, Blockley and Waddesdon. Towns its size ↓
Written from the police.uk and government data on this page. Figures are crimes police recorded, not convictions.
The B for Machen, and how it is built
A fairly firm grade. Built on 173 graded crimes over three years. The grade adds violent and sexual offences and crimes against homes and vehicles per resident and ranks Machen against every UK town of 1,000 or more.
Per resident, against all UK towns; beside it, how it compares with towns its size.
What police recorded in the last 12 months
Against the typical town its size, Machen runs highest on public order (8.1 per 1,000 against 2.4), anti-social behaviour (11.6 per 1,000 against 5.3) and criminal damage & arson (5 per 1,000 against 3.2).
Show as a table
| Category | In the grade | Reports | Per 1,000 | Typical |
|---|---|---|---|---|
| Violence & sexual offences | Violent | 46 | 23.2 | 16.6 |
| Anti-social behaviour | not graded | 23 | 11.6 | 5.3 |
| Public order | not graded | 16 | 8.1 | 2.4 |
| Criminal damage & arson | Home & vehicle | 10 | 5 | 3.2 |
| Burglary | Home & vehicle | 7 | 3.5 | 1.6 |
| Vehicle crime | Home & vehicle | 4 | 2 | 1.5 |
| Other theft | not graded | 3 | 1.5 | 2.5 |
| Other crime | not graded | 3 | 1.5 | 1.1 |
| Drugs | not graded | 2 | 1 | 0.6 |
| Robbery | Violent | 2 | 1 | 0 |
| Shoplifting | not graded | 1 | 0.5 | 0 |
| Possession of weapons | Violent | 1 | 0.5 | 0 |
| Bicycle theft | not graded | 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.
Among 1,764 towns its size, Machen ranks 1,082nd for the least graded crime
| # | Town | People | Violent | Homes & vehicles | Shops & theft | Safety |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| 1 | Clipsham Rutland | 1,150 | 0 | 0 | 0 | A+ |
| … | ||||||
| 331 | Marshfield Gwent | 2,386 | 11.7 | 5.2 | 3.1 | A |
| … | ||||||
| 351 | Govilon Gwent | 1,342 | 13.2 | 4 | 3.7 | A |
| … | ||||||
| 571 | Caer-went Gwent | 1,523 | 14.9 | 5.7 | 2.2 | A− |
| … | ||||||
| 643 | Portskewett Gwent | 1,627 | 18 | 3.7 | 1.6 | A− |
| … | ||||||
| 1079 | Westbourne West Sussex | 1,938 | 14.6 | 14.3 | 6.2 | B |
| 1080 | Blockley Gloucestershire | 1,069 | 16.6 | 12.4 | 1.2 | B |
| 1081 | Waddesdon Buckinghamshire | 1,859 | 22.6 | 6.5 | 3.2 | B |
| 1082 | Machen Gwent | 1,985 | 20 | 9.1 | 8.4 | B |
| 1083 | Barrow upon Humber Lincolnshire | 2,843 | 21.1 | 8 | 2.2 | B |
| 1084 | Leeswood Clwyd | 1,948 | 21.7 | 7.4 | 3.8 | B |
| 1085 | Woolmer Green Hertfordshire | 1,409 | 21.5 | 7.6 | 5.9 | B |
| … | ||||||
| 1764 | 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 Machen, and others in Gwent.
Crime in Machen 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 11 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.
49 violent and sexual offences in the last 12 months, against 37 the year before
“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 +32% (towns its size +3%), shoplifting and theft -85% (towns its size +4%).
No one died in a collision on Machen’s roads in 2021–2025
Police recorded 7 collisions with injuries inside Machen in five years. 3 people were killed or seriously injured: 0 on foot and 1 on a bicycle.
Most UK towns of 1,000 to 2,500 people (94%) had no road deaths in these five years, and Machen is one of them.
Counting serious injuries too, a town of Machen’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; Machen had 3.
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 Machen’s built-up area, 2021–2025. Described here; not part of the Safety Grade.
Crime in the places around Machen
| Town | People | Violent | Homes & vehicles | Safety |
|---|---|---|---|---|
| Machen | 1,985 | 20 | 9.1 | B |
| Trethomas | 1,713 | 58 | 19.5 | D− |
| Risca | 15,194 | 44.2 | 18.7 | D |
| Cwmfelinfach | 1,353 | 30.8 | 16 | C |
| Bedwas | 6,463 | 39.4 | 14.8 | C− |
| Rogerstone | 7,546 | 17.5 | 10.1 | B |
| Abercarn | 5,123 | 35.5 | 16.7 | C− |
| Llanbradach | 3,766 | 32.7 | 14.7 | C− |
Machen records more graded crime per resident than 1 of its 7 neighbours. Rogerstone, 3.2 miles away, records 17.5 violent and sexual offences per 1,000 residents a year (3-year average), against Machen’s 20.
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 Machen 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 Machen
Is Machen safe?
Police recorded 20 violent and sexual offences and 9.1 burglaries, vehicle crimes and acts of criminal damage per 1,000 residents a year over the three years to August 2026 (police.uk, inside Machen’s built-up area). That earns a B for safety: less crime per resident than 58% of UK towns. Among 1,764 UK towns of 1,000 to 3,000 people, Machen is 1,082nd from the least crime.
Is crime going up in Machen?
Police recorded 49 violent and sexual offences in the 12 months to August 2026, against 37 in the 12 months before. With numbers this small, a few crimes change the rate a lot.
What is the most common crime in Machen?
Violence & sexual offences: 46 in the 12 months to August 2026, which in police.uk includes harassment, stalking and assault without injury. Next came public order (16) and criminal damage & arson (10), with 23 reports of anti-social behaviour.
How does Machen compare with Newport?
Newport records 55.8 violent and sexual offences and 25.6 crimes against homes and vehicles per 1,000 residents a year, against Machen’s 20 and 9.1, 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 · Welsh Government Welsh Index of Multiple Deprivation 2025, community safety domain by LSOA · 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.