Photo: al partington · CC BY-SA 2.0Less burglary, vehicle crime and damage is recorded per resident in Pontesbury than in 83% of UK towns
The overall Safety Grade is B−, which means close to the middle of UK towns, judged on crimes police recorded inside its built-up area from September 2023 to August 2026. For every 1,000 residents, 25.4 violent and sexual offences and 5.4 incidents of burglary, vehicle crime and damage were logged a year. Of all the kinds of crime, anti-social behaviour is where Pontesbury departs most from towns its size: 9.7 per 1,000 against 5.3. Violence recorded locally climbed 20% 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 Pontesbury
Violent crime rose over the year
In the 12 months to August 2026 police recorded 20% more violent crime per resident in Pontesbury than in the year before; across UK towns of 1,000 to 2,500 people violent crime held steady. Trend ↓
More crime than many places its size
Of 1,764 UK towns of 1,000 to 3,000 people, Pontesbury has the 1,162nd lowest rate of graded crime: lower than Burham, Ruspidge and New Hartley, higher than North Tawton, Creech St Michael and East Hanney. Towns its size ↓
Many neighbourhoods rank low for crime nationally
The government’s Indices of Deprivation 2025 rank every neighbourhood in England on recorded crime. 13% of Pontesbury’s residents live in one of the lowest-crime 10%, and 0% in one of the highest-crime 20%. Neighbourhood ranks ↓
Written from the police.uk and government data on this page. Figures are crimes police recorded, not convictions.
The grade: B− for Pontesbury
A fairly firm grade. Built on 182 graded crimes over three years. The grade adds violent and sexual offences and crimes against homes and vehicles per resident and ranks Pontesbury against every UK town of 1,000 or more.
Per resident, against all UK towns; beside it, how it compares with towns its size.
How crime in Pontesbury has moved
“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 +20% (towns its size +3%), anti-social behaviour -32% (towns its size -1%).
What police recorded in the last 12 months
Against the typical town its size, Pontesbury runs highest on anti-social behaviour (9.7 per 1,000 against 5.3) and violence & sexual offences (25.9 per 1,000 against 16.6).
Show as a table
| Category | In the grade | Reports | Per 1,000 | Typical |
|---|---|---|---|---|
| Violence & sexual offences | Violent | 51 | 25.9 | 16.6 |
| Anti-social behaviour | not graded | 19 | 9.7 | 5.3 |
| Public order | not graded | 9 | 4.6 | 2.4 |
| Criminal damage & arson | Home & vehicle | 7 | 3.6 | 3.2 |
| Other theft | not graded | 4 | 2 | 2.5 |
| Other crime | not graded | 4 | 2 | 1.1 |
| Possession of weapons | Violent | 4 | 2 | 0 |
| Shoplifting | not graded | 3 | 1.5 | 0 |
| Burglary | Home & vehicle | 3 | 1.5 | 1.6 |
| Drugs | not graded | 2 | 1 | 0.6 |
| Vehicle crime | Home & vehicle | 0 | 0 | 1.5 |
| 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.
Pontesbury is 1,162nd of 1,764 UK towns of 1,000 to 3,000
| # | Town | People | Violent | Homes & vehicles | Shops & theft | Safety |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| 1 | Clipsham Rutland | 1,150 | 0 | 0 | 0 | A+ |
| … | ||||||
| 314 | Edgmond Shropshire | 1,560 | 10.7 | 6 | 1.9 | A |
| … | ||||||
| 369 | Pant Shropshire | 1,173 | 13.2 | 4.4 | 5.8 | A |
| … | ||||||
| 373 | Prees Higher Heath Shropshire | 1,226 | 14.4 | 3.3 | 1.6 | A |
| … | ||||||
| 612 | Morda Shropshire | 1,976 | 17.1 | 4.1 | 1.2 | A− |
| … | ||||||
| 1159 | North Tawton Devon | 1,785 | 26.1 | 4.7 | 2.4 | B− |
| 1160 | Creech St Michael Somerset | 2,327 | 26.8 | 4 | 4 | B− |
| 1161 | East Hanney Oxfordshire | 1,233 | 23.8 | 7 | 1.9 | B− |
| 1162 | Pontesbury Shropshire | 1,968 | 25.4 | 5.4 | 6.3 | B− |
| 1163 | Gayton Norfolk | 1,522 | 24.3 | 6.6 | 3.1 | B− |
| 1164 | Thurlstone South Yorkshire | 1,003 | 23.6 | 7.3 | 1.7 | B− |
| 1165 | Gosberton Lincolnshire | 1,455 | 22.9 | 8 | 6.2 | 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 Pontesbury, and others in Shropshire.
Crime in Pontesbury 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 5 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.
No one died in a collision on Pontesbury’s roads in 2021–2025
Police recorded 2 collisions with injuries inside Pontesbury in five years. 1 person was 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 Pontesbury is one of them.
Counting serious injuries too, a town of Pontesbury’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; Pontesbury had 1.
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 Pontesbury’s built-up area, 2021–2025. Described here; not part of the Safety Grade.
Crime in the places around Pontesbury
| Town | People | Violent | Homes & vehicles | Safety |
|---|---|---|---|---|
| Pontesbury | 1,968 | 25.4 | 5.4 | B− |
| Minsterley | 1,719 | 27 | 8.7 | C+ |
| Hanwood | 1,257 | 33.5 | 8.8 | C |
| Bayston Hill | 5,221 | 10.9 | 2.6 | A+ |
| Shrewsbury | 76,013 | 37.4 | 12.6 | C− |
| Church Stretton | 3,576 | 18.1 | 7.1 | B+ |
| Bomere Heath | 1,364 | 31 | 7.8 | C+ |
| Baschurch | 2,007 | 18.6 | 4.5 | A− |
Pontesbury records more graded crime per resident than 3 of its 7 neighbours. Bayston Hill, 5.4 miles away, records 10.9 violent and sexual offences per 1,000 residents a year (3-year average), against Pontesbury’s 25.4.
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
- 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 Pontesbury 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 Pontesbury
Is Pontesbury safe?
Police recorded 25.4 violent and sexual offences and 5.4 burglaries, vehicle crimes and acts of criminal damage per 1,000 residents a year over the three years to August 2026 (police.uk, inside Pontesbury’s built-up area). That earns a B− for safety: less crime per resident than 54% of UK towns. Among 1,764 UK towns of 1,000 to 3,000 people, Pontesbury is 1,162nd from the least crime. 13% of residents live in neighbourhoods in England’s lowest-crime 10%.
Is crime going up in Pontesbury?
In the 12 months to August 2026, against the 12 months before, violent crime rose 20%, burglary, vehicle crime and damage fell 17%, shoplifting and theft rose 17% and anti-social behaviour fell 32%. Across UK towns of 1,000 to 2,500 people, violent crime held steady.
What is the most common crime in Pontesbury?
Violence & sexual offences: 51 in the 12 months to August 2026, which in police.uk includes harassment, stalking and assault without injury. Next came public order (9) and criminal damage & arson (7), with 19 reports of anti-social behaviour.
How does Pontesbury compare with Shrewsbury?
Shrewsbury records 37.4 violent and sexual offences and 12.6 crimes against homes and vehicles per 1,000 residents a year, against Pontesbury’s 25.4 and 5.4, 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.