Photo: Colin Park · CC BY-SA 2.0Bethersden records criminal damage & arson at 3.1 times the rate of a typical town its size
Police recorded 10 cases of criminal damage & arson in Bethersden in the 12 months to August 2026, a rate of 9.9 per 1,000 against a typical 3.2. Overall, Bethersden grades B+ for safety: less crime per resident than 71% of UK towns, on crimes police recorded inside its built-up area from September 2023 to August 2026. About one violent or sexual offence a year is recorded for every 67 residents.
Crimes and reports per 1,000 residents (Census 2021) a year, September 2023 to August 2026.
What stands out about safety in Bethersden
About the middle for a village its size
Of 1,214 UK towns of 1,000 to 2,000 people, Bethersden has the 619th lowest rate of graded crime: lower than Little Plumstead, Alconbury and Welsh Bicknor, higher than Hill Ridware, Marshland St James and King's Cliffe. Towns its size ↓
Written from the police.uk and government data on this page. Figures are crimes police recorded, not convictions.
What sits behind Bethersden’s B+
A fairly firm grade. Built on 74 graded crimes over three years. The grade adds violent and sexual offences and crimes against homes and vehicles per resident and ranks Bethersden 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, Bethersden runs highest on criminal damage & arson (9.9 per 1,000 against 3.2).
Show as a table
| Category | In the grade | Reports | Per 1,000 | Typical |
|---|---|---|---|---|
| Violence & sexual offences | Violent | 16 | 15.9 | 16.6 |
| Criminal damage & arson | Home & vehicle | 10 | 9.9 | 3.2 |
| Anti-social behaviour | not graded | 8 | 7.9 | 5.3 |
| Other theft | not graded | 4 | 4 | 2.5 |
| Vehicle crime | Home & vehicle | 2 | 2 | 1.5 |
| Drugs | not graded | 1 | 1 | 0.6 |
| Other crime | not graded | 1 | 1 | 1.1 |
| Possession of weapons | Violent | 1 | 1 | 0 |
| Shoplifting | not graded | 0 | 0 | 0 |
| Public order | not graded | 0 | 0 | 2.4 |
| Burglary | Home & vehicle | 0 | 0 | 1.6 |
| Bicycle theft | not graded | 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 Bethersden 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 12 burglaries, vehicle crimes or acts of criminal damage, plus 4 shoplifting and theft reports, in the 12 months to August 2026. Each dot is one resident; each coloured dot is one recorded crime.
Of 1,214 towns its size, Bethersden is 619th from the least graded crime
| # | Town | People | Violent | Homes & vehicles | Shops & theft | Safety |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| 1 | Clipsham Rutland | 1,150 | 0 | 0 | 0 | A+ |
| … | ||||||
| 12 | Plaxtol Kent | 1,137 | 3.8 | 3.2 | 1.2 | A+ |
| … | ||||||
| 24 | Challock Kent | 1,089 | 5.2 | 3.1 | 2.1 | A+ |
| … | ||||||
| 77 | Lympne Kent | 1,074 | 9.3 | 2.5 | 2.2 | A+ |
| 78 | Guston Kent | 1,684 | 7.5 | 4.4 | 3.6 | A+ |
| … | ||||||
| 616 | Hill Ridware Staffordshire | 1,012 | 17.5 | 6.9 | 2.6 | B+ |
| 617 | Marshland St James Norfolk | 1,025 | 20.5 | 3.9 | 3.6 | B+ |
| 618 | King's Cliffe Northamptonshire | 1,581 | 12 | 12.4 | 2.1 | B+ |
| 619 | Bethersden Kent | 1,008 | 14.9 | 9.6 | 4.6 | B+ |
| 620 | Eastington Gloucestershire | 1,218 | 18.7 | 5.8 | 4.8 | B+ |
| 621 | Rock Cornwall | 1,156 | 20.1 | 4.4 | 6 | B+ |
| 622 | Dilton Marsh Wiltshire | 1,958 | 18.7 | 5.8 | 1.2 | B+ |
| … | ||||||
| 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 Bethersden, and others in Kent.
17 violent and sexual offences in the last 12 months, against 14 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).
No one died in a collision on Bethersden’s roads in 2021–2025
Police recorded 3 collisions with injuries inside Bethersden in five years. 2 people were 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 Bethersden is one of them.
Counting serious injuries too, a town of Bethersden’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; Bethersden had 2.
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 Bethersden’s built-up area, 2021–2025. Described here; not part of the Safety Grade.
Crime in the places around Bethersden
| Town | People | Violent | Homes & vehicles | Safety |
|---|---|---|---|---|
| Bethersden | 1,008 | 14.9 | 9.6 | B+ |
| Shadoxhurst | 1,009 | 10.9 | 4 | A |
| Woodchurch | 1,201 | 18 | 8.6 | B+ |
| Tenterden | 7,775 | 28.5 | 12.4 | C |
| Biddenden | 1,345 | 24.3 | 11.7 | C+ |
| Ashford | 82,143 | 40.4 | 14.6 | C− |
| Charing | 2,170 | 21.5 | 13.4 | B− |
| Finberry | 1,571 | 32.9 | 4.9 | C+ |
Bethersden records more graded crime per resident than 1 of its 7 neighbours. Shadoxhurst, 3.2 miles away, records 10.9 violent and sexual offences per 1,000 residents a year (3-year average), against Bethersden’s 14.9.
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 Bethersden 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 Bethersden
Is Bethersden safe?
Police recorded 14.9 violent and sexual offences and 9.6 burglaries, vehicle crimes and acts of criminal damage per 1,000 residents a year over the three years to August 2026 (police.uk, inside Bethersden’s built-up area). That earns a B+ for safety: less crime per resident than 71% of UK towns. Among 1,214 UK towns of 1,000 to 2,000 people, Bethersden is 619th from the least crime.
Is crime going up in Bethersden?
Police recorded 17 violent and sexual offences in the 12 months to August 2026, against 14 in the 12 months before. With numbers this small, a few crimes change the rate a lot.
What is the most common crime in Bethersden?
Violence & sexual offences: 16 in the 12 months to August 2026, which in police.uk includes harassment, stalking and assault without injury. Next came criminal damage & arson (10) and other theft (4), with 8 reports of anti-social behaviour.
How does Bethersden compare with Ashford?
Ashford records 40.4 violent and sexual offences and 14.6 crimes against homes and vehicles per 1,000 residents a year, against Bethersden’s 14.9 and 9.6, 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.