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The Paisley town centrePhoto: david cameron photographer · CC BY-SA 2.0
–Not graded
Safety in Paisley · Scottish Government, SIMD

Recorded crime in the Renfrewshire council area is 7% below Scotland’s rate

Police Scotland doesn’t publish crimes street by street, so Paisley has no Safety Grade and no overall grade until the 2026 Scottish Index of Multiple Deprivation brings neighbourhood crime figures. What Scotland does publish: crime for the whole Renfrewshire council area (532 crimes per 10,000 people in 2025-26), and how Paisley’s own neighbourhoods rank for crime.

Crimes, Renfrewshire
532
per 10,000 people, 2025-26
Scotland 569
Violence
121
non-sexual violent crimes per 10,000
Scotland 136
Cleared up
60%
of recorded crimes, 2025-26
Scotland 57%
SIMD crimes in Paisley
395
per 10,000 residents, 2017/18
Scotland 276
What stands out · In brief

What stands out about safety in Paisley

Crime about level over ten years

Recorded crime across the Renfrewshire council area went from 530 to 532 per 10,000 people between 2016-17 and 2025-26; across Scotland it moved +3%. Ten years ↓

More crime-deprived neighbourhoods than most

35% of Paisley’s residents live in the fifth of Scotland’s small areas with the most crime on SIMD 2020, and 16% in the fifth with the least. Its rate of SIMD crimes, 395 per 10,000 in 2017/18, is 43% above Scotland’s. Neighbourhood ranks ↓

Written from the Scottish Government’s recorded crime and SIMD figures on this page.

Where in Paisley

Fewest SIMD crimes in Paisley Ralston, Paisley Dykebar and Paisley South West; most in Renfrewshire Rural South and Howwood

AreaResidentsPer 10,000
Paisley Ralston4,61961
Paisley Dykebar4,00980
Paisley South West4,449126
Paisley Glenburn East3,534161
Paisley Glenburn West3,959162
Paisley West5,185222
Paisley East4,692239
Paisley Gallowhill and Hillington5,173344
Elderslie and Phoenix1,260373
Paisley Ferguslie4,197610
Paisley North West4,054686
Paisley North5,838886
Paisley Central7,442965
Renfrewshire Rural South and Howwood4671,341
Below Scotland’s rateAt or above it

11 of Paisley’s 18 areas are at or above Scotland’s rate of 276 (orange bars). SIMD counts crimes where they were recorded, so an area with a town centre, a station or a hospital records more than its own residents suffer.

SIMD crimes per 10,000 residents in 2017/18, by small area (2011 data zones, grouped by the names the Scottish Government gives them), fewest first. The seven lowest and seven highest of 18.

Towns its size

Paisley is 13th of 14 Scottish towns of 42,256 to 147,365

#TownPeopleSIMD crimes per 10,000In the most crime-deprived fifth
1East Kilbride South Lanarkshire76,62621411%
2Dunfermline Fife56,05324718%
…
10Greenock Inverclyde42,87035527%
11Dundee Dundee City147,36537234%
12Kirkcaldy and Dysart Fife51,13538341%
13Paisley Renfrewshire79,35139535%
14Inverness Highland48,25745030%

SIMD crimes per 10,000 residents in 2017/18, counting from the fewest: the towns either side of Paisley, and the ends of the list. Described, not graded.

By type

What police recorded in the Renfrewshire council area in 2025-26

Common assault101
Shoplifting83
Vandalism52
Fraud26
Housebreaking10
Drug supply9
Car theft8
Serious assault6
Robbery4
Domestic abuse3
Violent & sexualHomes, cars & damageOtherScotland

Against Scotland, the Renfrewshire council area runs highest on robbery (4 per 10,000 against 3). Housebreaking and domestic abuse sit below Scotland’s rate.

Show every crime group as a table
GroupRecordedPer 10,000Scotland
Non-sexual crimes of violence2,284121136
Sexual crimes4892630
Crimes of dishonesty (theft, housebreaking, fraud)3,628192213
Damage and reckless behaviour (vandalism, fire-raising)1,1746269
Crimes against society (drugs, weapons, justice)2,496132121
Antisocial offences (disorder, threatening behaviour)1,98910593

Scottish Government, Recorded Crime in Scotland 2025-26: crimes and offences by council area. Groups 1 to 5 are crimes; group 6, antisocial offences, is offences.

Per 10,000 people. The tick on each bar is Scotland’s rate. Every town in the council area shares these figures.

Neighbourhoods · Scotland-wide rank

35% of Paisley residents live in one of Scotland’s highest-crime neighbourhoods

23%1
12%2
7%3
11%4
6%5
12%6
5%7
8%8
12%9
4%10
Higher crimeLower crime

24% of residents live in the lowest-crime 30% of Scotland’s neighbourhoods, and 35% in the highest-crime 20%. Paisley counted 395 SIMD crimes per 10,000 residents in 2017/18, 43% above Scotland’s 276; three years before, 460 (-14%, Scotland -9%).

Scottish Government, SIMD 2020v2 crime domain and SIMD crime indicators (crimes of violence, sexual crimes, domestic housebreaking, vandalism, drugs offences and common assault, 2014/15 and 2017/18). Residents from Scotland’s Census 2022 output areas.

Paisley’s residents by the crime decile of their small area (2011 data zone, about 800 people) in the Scottish Index of Multiple Deprivation 2020 (crime domain), where 1 is the highest-crime 10% of Scotland’s 6,976 data zones and 10 the lowest.

Cleared up

60% of crimes in the Renfrewshire council area were cleared up, more than Scotland’s 57%

All crimes60%
Violence72%
Sexual crimes55%
Dishonesty39%
Damage30%
Against society94%
Violent & sexualHomes, cars & damageOtherScotland

Violence and drugs crimes are cleared up most often, because they are usually recorded with a suspect in view; housebreaking, theft and vandalism least.

Scottish Government, Recorded Crime in Scotland 2025-26: crime clear-up rates by council area.

Share of crimes recorded in 2025-26 that were cleared up: a suspect identified and enough evidence to report them to the procurator fiscal. The tick is Scotland.

Ten years · yearly

Recorded crime about level since 2016-17

Scottish Government, Recorded Crime in Scotland, 2016-17 to the newest year. Since April 2019 violence includes the new crime of domestic abuse under the Domestic Abuse (Scotland) Act 2018.

Per 10,000 people each year, the Renfrewshire council area against Scotland. 2016-17 to 2025-26: all crimes +0% (Scotland +3%), violence +8%.

1,000 people · one year

For every 1,000 people in the Renfrewshire council area, about 15 violent or sexual crimes in 2025-26

Violent & sexualHousebreaking, car theft & damageOther theft & fraud
2,773
violent and sexual crimes, Renfrewshire, 2025-26
1,519
housebreaking, car theft & damage
3,283
other theft & fraud
40
of the three, per 1,000

A crime isn’t a victim: one person can suffer several, and crimes in a city centre often involve visitors rather than residents.

And about 8 housebreakings, car thefts or acts of vandalism and fire-raising, plus 17 other thefts and frauds. Each dot is one person; each coloured dot is one recorded crime. These are council-wide figures: every town in the Renfrewshire council area shares them.

On the roads

10 people died in collisions on Paisley’s roads in 2021–2025

Police recorded 234 collisions with injuries inside Paisley in five years, in which 10 people died (6 were pedestrians). 113 people were killed or seriously injured: 50 on foot and 8 on a bicycle.

That is 2.5 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, Paisley had 28.5 people killed or seriously injured per 100,000 residents a year, about the same as the median for UK towns and cities of 50,000 or more (30.3). 44% of them were on foot, against 31% across UK towns and cities of 50,000 or more.

10
people killed, 2021–2025
113
killed or seriously injured
50
of them on foot
8
of them on a bicycle

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; the towns its size are England and Wales’s. There’s no national rate here: more than two thirds of Scotland’s road deaths (70%) happen outside every town’s locality boundary. Source: DfT road casualty statistics (STATS19), 2021–2025.

Collisions police recorded inside Paisley’s locality, 2021–2025. Described here; not part of the Safety Grade.

Neighbours

Crime in the places around Paisley

Fewest quarterSecondThirdMost SIMD crime
TownPeopleSIMD crimes per 10,000Most crime-deprived fifth
Paisley79,35139535%
Elderslie5,6321553%
Renfrew23,81225625%
Linwood8,40824613%
Barrhead17,60826624%
Johnstone16,47727126%
Neilston5,45926727%
Erskine14,8571120%

Paisley counted more SIMD crime per resident than every neighbour in the table. Elderslie, 2.3 miles away, counted 155 per 10,000, against Paisley’s 395.

SIMD crimes per 10,000 residents in 2017/18. The map colours each town by the quarter of Scotland’s towns it falls in; they are not grades. Tap a town for its safety page.

How to read these numbers

What this data can and can’t tell you

  • Council areas, not towns. Recorded crime and clear-up rates are published for each of Scotland’s 32 council areas, so every town in the Renfrewshire council area shares them. A city centre and a quiet village in the same council show the same figures.
  • SIMD crime is town-level, but old. The Scottish Index of Multiple Deprivation counts selected crimes (violence, sexual crimes, domestic housebreaking, vandalism, drugs offences and common assault) in each small area. SIMD 2020 uses crimes from 2017/18; SIMD 2026, due at the end of 2026, will bring newer figures; we plan to grade Scottish safety on them.
  • Not a grade. Nothing on this page is graded. The towns-its-size ranking and the neighbours’ colours describe SIMD crime rates; they aren’t a Safety Grade and don’t feed one.
  • Recorded, not experienced. Recorded crime is what the police record. It moves with reporting and policing as well as with crime; the Scottish Crime and Justice Survey asks people directly, for Scotland as a whole.

Questions about safety in Paisley

Is Paisley safe?

Police Scotland recorded 532 crimes per 10,000 people across the Renfrewshire council area in 2025-26, 7% below Scotland’s 569. Within Paisley, the Scottish Index of Multiple Deprivation counted 395 of its selected crimes per 10,000 residents in 2017/18, against 276 across Scotland; 35% of residents live in the fifth of Scotland’s neighbourhoods with the most crime. Police Scotland doesn’t publish street-level crime, so Paisley has no Safety Grade.

How many crimes are solved in the Renfrewshire council area?

60% of crimes recorded in 2025-26 were cleared up (someone was identified and there was enough evidence to report them to the procurator fiscal), against 57% across Scotland.

Why doesn’t Paisley have a Safety Grade?

Our Safety Grade counts crimes inside each town’s boundary. Police Scotland doesn’t publish crimes by location for reuse, so Scottish towns can’t be measured the same way. The 2026 Scottish Index of Multiple Deprivation will bring newer neighbourhood crime figures.

Sources: Scottish Government, Recorded Crime in Scotland (crimes, offences and clear-up rates by council area, 2016-17 to 2025-26); Scottish Index of Multiple Deprivation 2020v2 crime domain and SIMD crime indicators (2014/15, 2017/18), 2011 data zones with Census 2022 residents · Department for Transport road casualty statistics (STATS19), collisions 2021–2025, points inside the NRS 2022 locality 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.