Photo: Mайкл Гиммельфарб (Mike Gimelfarb) · Public domainFew UK towns record more crime per resident than Westminster
The yearly rates were 81.4 violent and sexual offences and 42.3 incidents of burglary, vehicle crime and damage per 1,000 residents. Violent crime here is higher than in 99% of UK towns; burglary, vehicle crime and damage, higher than in 100%. That puts it at D− for safety, judged on crimes police recorded inside Westminster’s built-up area from September 2023 to August 2026.
Crimes and reports per 1,000 residents (Census 2021) a year, September 2023 to August 2026.
What stands out about safety in Westminster
One ward carries much of the rate
St James's ward recorded 12,360 of Westminster’s 48,879 violent and sexual offences in three years: 397.4 per 1,000 of its own residents a year. Across the rest of Westminster the figure is 62. Where in Westminster ↓
Violent crime fell over the year
In the 12 months to August 2026 police recorded 5% less violent crime per resident in Westminster than in the year before; across UK towns and cities of 50,000 or more violent crime held steady. Burglary, vehicle crime and criminal damage fell 27% (towns its size: held steady). Trend ↓
Written from the police.uk and government data on this page. Figures are crimes police recorded, not convictions.
What’s behind Westminster’s grade
A firm grade. Built on 74,492 graded crimes over three years. The grade adds violent and sexual offences and crimes against homes and vehicles per resident and ranks Westminster 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, Westminster runs highest on theft from the person (83.2 per 1,000 against 0.7), other theft (71.4 per 1,000 against 6.6) and robbery (13 per 1,000 against 1.4).
Show as a table
| Category | In the grade | Reports | Per 1,000 | Typical |
|---|---|---|---|---|
| Theft from the person | not graded | 16,947 | 83.2 | 0.7 |
| Other theft | not graded | 14,535 | 71.4 | 6.6 |
| Anti-social behaviour | not graded | 13,190 | 64.8 | 17.5 |
| Violence & sexual offences | Violent | 12,673 | 62.3 | 38.6 |
| Shoplifting | not graded | 9,357 | 46 | 10.3 |
| Public order | not graded | 3,747 | 18.4 | 7.4 |
| Drugs | not graded | 2,982 | 14.6 | 3.8 |
| Vehicle crime | Home & vehicle | 2,739 | 13.5 | 4.9 |
| Robbery | Violent | 2,637 | 13 | 1.4 |
| Burglary | Home & vehicle | 2,526 | 12.4 | 3.4 |
| Criminal damage & arson | Home & vehicle | 1,529 | 7.5 | 7.5 |
| Bicycle theft | not graded | 1,005 | 4.9 | 0.9 |
| Other crime | not graded | 479 | 2.4 | 2.1 |
| Possession of weapons | Violent | 442 | 2.2 | 1.1 |
“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 and cities of 50,000 or more.
Lowest recorded crime in Maida Vale, Queen's Park and Abbey Road; highest in St James's
| Ward | Residents | Violent | Homes & vehicles | |
|---|---|---|---|---|
| Maida Vale | 11,358 | 17.4 | 17.3 | |
| Queen's Park | 12,761 | 23.3 | 14.6 | |
| Abbey Road | 13,048 | 18.5 | 19.7 | |
| Pimlico South | 10,688 | 26.8 | 12.4 | |
| Little Venice | 10,370 | 25.8 | 22 | |
| Regent's Park | 11,607 | 31.4 | 23.9 | |
| Westbourne | 11,684 | 38.6 | 19.5 | |
| Vincent Square | 10,327 | 47.6 | 20 | |
| Church Street | 11,676 | 50.2 | 23.9 | |
| Bayswater | 12,363 | 39.5 | 36.7 | |
| Harrow Road | 11,006 | 49.5 | 28.4 | |
| Lancaster Gate | 10,947 | 49.2 | 33.6 | |
| Pimlico North | 10,319 | 60.3 | 24.9 | |
| Hyde Park | 10,324 | 57.7 | 32.8 | |
| Knightsbridge & Belgravia | 11,027 | 69.8 | 56 | |
| Marylebone | 12,158 | 112.5 | 79 | |
| West End | 11,541 | 335.8 | 157.9 | |
| St James's | 10,367 | 397.4 | 121.9 |
| At or near | Reports | Mostly |
|---|---|---|
| Nightclubs | 20,762 | 65% shoplifting & theft |
| Shopping areas | 12,524 | 75% shoplifting & theft |
| Car parks | 11,277 | 45% shoplifting & theft |
| College and university buildings | 7,588 | 75% shoplifting & theft |
| Supermarkets | 3,332 | 48% shoplifting & theft |
| Hospitals | 2,718 | 31% shoplifting & theft |
| Police stations | 2,331 | 36% violent |
| Conference and exhibition centres | 1,561 | 48% shoplifting & theft |
| Petrol stations | 1,073 | 37% shoplifting & theft |
| Bus and coach stations | 1,043 | 53% shoplifting & theft |
A ward’s rate counts crimes where they happened, not where victims live, so St James's records 6.4× the violent crime per resident of the rest of Westminster. police.uk places each crime at an anonymous map point; some are named for the kind of place (a supermarket, a car park), and each row adds up every place of that kind in Westminster. We show only these, never streets or homes.
Crimes per 1,000 residents a year by council ward (the part of each ward inside Westminster’s built-up area), September 2023 to August 2026. Beside it, the public places police.uk named most often.
How Westminster compares with UK towns of 142,000 to 275,000
| # | Town | People | Violent | Homes & vehicles | Shops & theft | Safety |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| 1 | Richmond upon Thames London | 192,888 | 18.8 | 17.9 | 15.9 | C+ |
| 2 | Kingston upon Thames London | 166,333 | 24.7 | 14 | 20.6 | C+ |
| 3 | Harrow London | 260,534 | 23.3 | 15.4 | 16 | C+ |
| 4 | Merton London | 214,931 | 24.2 | 14.8 | 16.1 | C+ |
| … | ||||||
| 38 | Kingston upon Hull East Riding of Yorkshire | 270,816 | 60.7 | 24 | 25.6 | D− |
| 39 | Blackpool Lancashire | 149,087 | 79.1 | 26.3 | 24.8 | D− |
| 40 | Middlesbrough North Yorkshire | 148,232 | 70.8 | 40.1 | 30.1 | D− |
| 41 | Westminster London | 203,571 | 81.4 | 42.3 | 254.6 | 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 Westminster, and others in London.
Police in Westminster identify a suspect less often than across UK towns
No suspect was identified for 84% of Westminster’s burglaries, vehicle crimes and criminal damage, against 69% across UK towns, and for 53% of violent and sexual offences against 19%. Most violent cases close as “unable to prosecute” (27% here), usually because the victim doesn’t support a prosecution. About 7% 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. 26,021 crimes.
Crime in Westminster 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 33 burglaries, vehicle crimes or acts of criminal damage, plus 206 shoplifting and theft reports, in the 12 months to August 2026. Each dot is one resident; each coloured dot is one recorded crime.
How Westminster’s neighbourhoods rank in England
10% of residents live in the lowest-crime 30% of England’s neighbourhoods, and 21% 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.
Westminster’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.
Violent crime down 5% in a year, while towns its size held steady
“Towns its size” pools all UK towns and cities of 50,000 or more that police.uk covers each month (Greater Manchester has no data).
Rolling three-month rate, per 1,000 residents a year. In the 12 months to August 2026 against the 12 before: violent -5% (towns its size +2%), homes and vehicles -27% (towns its size -5%), shoplifting and theft -23% (towns its size -3%), anti-social behaviour -4% (towns its size -2%).
20 people died in collisions on Westminster’s roads in 2021–2025
Police recorded 5,686 collisions with injuries inside Westminster in five years, in which 20 people died (11 were pedestrians). 1,200 people were killed or seriously injured: 438 on foot and 410 on a bicycle.
That is 2.0 deaths per 100,000 residents a year, above the median for UK towns and cities of 50,000 or more (1.1, 210 towns).
Counting serious injuries too, Westminster had 117.9 people killed or seriously injured per 100,000 residents a year, above the median for UK towns and cities of 50,000 or more (30.3). 37% of them were on foot, against 31% across UK towns and cities of 50,000 or more.
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 Westminster’s built-up area, 2021–2025. Described here; not part of the Safety Grade.
Crime in the places around Westminster
| Town | People | Violent | Homes & vehicles | Safety |
|---|---|---|---|---|
| Westminster | 203,571 | 81.4 | 42.3 | D− |
| Kensington and Chelsea | 143,348 | 39.4 | 32 | D |
| Camden | 209,342 | 48.8 | 30.5 | D− |
| Hammersmith and Fulham | 182,187 | 39.2 | 23.5 | D |
| City of London | 7,820 | 252.8 | 111.5 | D− |
| Islington | 216,309 | 44.1 | 24.3 | D |
| Wandsworth | 326,725 | 27.7 | 18.9 | C |
| Lambeth | 317,108 | 40.1 | 21.2 | D |
Westminster records more graded crime per resident than 6 of its 7 neighbours; only City of London records more. Kensington and Chelsea, 1.4 miles away, records 39.4 violent and sexual offences per 1,000 residents a year (3-year average), against Westminster’s 81.4.
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
- Big public sites inside the boundary. police.uk counted 2,718 at or near a hospital over three years. They count in Westminster’s rate, as they would for any town that has them.
- 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 Westminster 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 Westminster
Is Westminster safe?
Police recorded 81.4 violent and sexual offences and 42.3 burglaries, vehicle crimes and acts of criminal damage per 1,000 residents a year over the three years to August 2026 (police.uk, inside Westminster’s built-up area). That earns a D− for safety: behind almost every UK town. Among UK towns and cities of 50,000 or more, Westminster has less crime per resident than 0%.
What are the safest areas of Westminster?
By council ward, Maida Vale, Queen's Park and Abbey Road record the least violent and household crime per resident: 17.4, 23.3 and 18.5 violent and sexual offences per 1,000 a year (3-year average), against 397.4 in St James's.
Is crime going up in Westminster?
In the 12 months to August 2026, against the 12 months before, violent crime fell 5%, burglary, vehicle crime and damage fell 27%, shoplifting and theft fell 23% and anti-social behaviour held steady. Across UK towns and cities of 50,000 or more, violent crime held steady.
Is Westminster town centre safe at night?
police.uk placed 20,762 crimes and reports at or near nightclubs in three years, 19% of them violent, and St James's ward records 397.4 violent and sexual offences per 1,000 of its residents a year. Over the last two years, violent crime peaked in July and was lowest in February.
What is the most common crime in Westminster?
Theft from the person: 16,947 in the 12 months to August 2026. Next came other theft (14,535) and violence & sexual offences (12,673), with 13,190 reports of anti-social behaviour.
How does Westminster compare with Barnet?
Barnet records 25.3 violent and sexual offences and 21 crimes against homes and vehicles per 1,000 residents a year, against Westminster’s 81.4 and 42.3, 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.