Photo: dbown100 · CC BY 3.0More crime per resident is recorded in Banwell than in 79% of UK towns of 1,000 to 2,500 people
Police recorded 11 cases of public order in Banwell in the 12 months to August 2026, a rate of 5.1 per 1,000 against a typical 2.4. Per 1,000 residents a year, 27.2 violent and sexual offences and 10.6 incidents of burglary, vehicle crime and damage were recorded. Violence recorded locally climbed 35% 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 Banwell
Violent crime rose over the year
In the 12 months to August 2026 police recorded 35% more violent crime per resident in Banwell 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 550 UK towns of 2,000 to 3,000 people, Banwell has the 412th lowest rate of graded crime: lower than Lostock Gralam, Alveston and Belton, higher than West Clyst, Brierley and Wychbold. Towns its size ↓
Written from the police.uk and government data on this page. Figures are crimes police recorded, not convictions.
The grade: C+ for Banwell
A fairly firm grade. Built on 247 graded crimes over three years. The grade adds violent and sexual offences and crimes against homes and vehicles per resident and ranks Banwell 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 Banwell 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 +35% (towns its size +3%), homes and vehicles -4% (towns its size +0%).
What police recorded in the last 12 months
Against the typical town its size, Banwell runs highest on public order (5.1 per 1,000 against 2.4), violence & sexual offences (33.5 per 1,000 against 16.6) and criminal damage & arson (5.5 per 1,000 against 3.2).
Show as a table
| Category | In the grade | Reports | Per 1,000 | Typical |
|---|---|---|---|---|
| Violence & sexual offences | Violent | 73 | 33.5 | 16.6 |
| Criminal damage & arson | Home & vehicle | 12 | 5.5 | 3.2 |
| Anti-social behaviour | not graded | 12 | 5.5 | 5.3 |
| Public order | not graded | 11 | 5.1 | 2.4 |
| Other theft | not graded | 6 | 2.8 | 2.5 |
| Burglary | Home & vehicle | 6 | 2.8 | 1.6 |
| Vehicle crime | Home & vehicle | 4 | 1.8 | 1.5 |
| Drugs | not graded | 3 | 1.4 | 0.6 |
| Possession of weapons | Violent | 1 | 0.5 | 0 |
| Shoplifting | not graded | 0 | 0 | 0 |
| Other crime | not graded | 0 | 0 | 1.1 |
| 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.
412th of 550: Banwell among towns its size
| # | Town | People | Violent | Homes & vehicles | Shops & theft | Safety |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| 1 | Richhill Armagh City, Banbridge and Craigavon | 2,738 | 6.2 | 2.8 | 3 | A+ |
| … | ||||||
| 57 | Tatworth Somerset | 2,287 | 11.7 | 5 | 2.2 | A |
| … | ||||||
| 97 | Merriott Somerset | 2,068 | 12.9 | 6 | 7.3 | A |
| … | ||||||
| 197 | Coleford Somerset | 2,235 | 17.5 | 6.9 | 5.1 | B+ |
| … | ||||||
| 201 | Timsbury Somerset | 2,506 | 18.8 | 5.9 | 10.5 | B+ |
| … | ||||||
| 409 | West Clyst Devon | 2,683 | 27.6 | 10 | 10.8 | C+ |
| 410 | Brierley South Yorkshire | 2,714 | 22.1 | 15.6 | 1.7 | C+ |
| 411 | Wychbold Worcestershire | 2,005 | 30.3 | 7.5 | 4 | C+ |
| 412 | Banwell Somerset | 2,178 | 27.2 | 10.6 | 3.4 | C+ |
| 413 | Mitcheldean Gloucestershire | 2,163 | 28.9 | 9 | 9.6 | C+ |
| 414 | West Wick Somerset | 2,425 | 31.8 | 6.2 | 4.4 | C+ |
| 415 | Wells-next-the-Sea Norfolk | 2,151 | 26.2 | 11.8 | 8.1 | C+ |
| … | ||||||
| 550 | Avonmouth Bristol | 2,643 | 82.9 | 54.6 | 60.4 | 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 Banwell, and others in Somerset.
Crime in Banwell 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 10 burglaries, vehicle crimes or acts of criminal damage, plus 3 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 Banwell’s roads in 2021–2025
Police recorded 15 collisions with injuries inside Banwell in five years. 3 people were killed or seriously injured: 2 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 Banwell is one of them.
Counting serious injuries too, a town of Banwell’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; Banwell 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 Banwell’s built-up area, 2021–2025. Described here; not part of the Safety Grade.
Crime in the places around Banwell
| Town | People | Violent | Homes & vehicles | Safety |
|---|---|---|---|---|
| Banwell | 2,178 | 27.2 | 10.6 | C+ |
| Locking | 3,819 | 44.6 | 11.8 | C− |
| Winscombe and Sandford | 4,605 | 18.8 | 7.7 | B+ |
| West Wick | 2,425 | 31.8 | 6.2 | C+ |
| Hutton | 1,686 | 12.1 | 8.9 | A− |
| Shipham | 1,104 | 6.3 | 3.9 | A+ |
| Weston-super-Mare | 84,600 | 57.4 | 17.2 | D |
| Churchill | 1,989 | 28 | 13.6 | C |
Banwell records more graded crime per resident than 3 of its 7 neighbours. Winscombe and Sandford, 1.7 miles away, records 18.8 violent and sexual offences per 1,000 residents a year (3-year average), against Banwell’s 27.2.
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 Banwell 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 Banwell
Is Banwell safe?
Police recorded 27.2 violent and sexual offences and 10.6 burglaries, vehicle crimes and acts of criminal damage per 1,000 residents a year over the three years to August 2026 (police.uk, inside Banwell’s built-up area). That earns a C+ for safety: less crime per resident than 39% of UK towns. Among 550 UK towns of 2,000 to 3,000 people, Banwell is 412th from the least crime.
Is crime going up in Banwell?
In the 12 months to August 2026, against the 12 months before, violent crime rose 35%, burglary, vehicle crime and damage held steady, shoplifting and theft fell 50% and anti-social behaviour fell 20%. Across UK towns of 1,000 to 2,500 people, violent crime held steady.
What is the most common crime in Banwell?
Violence & sexual offences: 73 in the 12 months to August 2026, which in police.uk includes harassment, stalking and assault without injury. Next came criminal damage & arson (12) and public order (11), with 12 reports of anti-social behaviour.
How does Banwell compare with Weston-super-Mare?
Weston-super-Mare records 57.4 violent and sexual offences and 17.2 crimes against homes and vehicles per 1,000 residents a year, against Banwell’s 27.2 and 10.6, 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.