Photo: Geoff Pick · CC BY-SA 2.0Brown Edge stands out for public order: 3.3 times the rate of a typical town its size
The overall Safety Grade is A−, which means less crime per resident than 75% of UK towns, judged on crimes police recorded inside its built-up area from September 2023 to August 2026. Violence recorded locally held about level in a year. For its size, it sits below 57% of the 1,541 UK towns of 1,000 to 2,500 people on crime per resident. In a usual year, 15.3 violent and sexual offences and 7.7 incidents of burglary, vehicle crime and damage are logged per 1,000 inhabitants.
Crimes and reports per 1,000 residents (Census 2021) a year, September 2023 to August 2026.
What stands out about safety in Brown Edge
Less crime than many places its size
Of 550 UK towns of 2,000 to 3,000 people, Brown Edge has the 176th lowest rate of graded crime: lower than Heage, Morton and Barwick in Elmet, higher than Hingham, Burgh le Marsh and Bishop's Tachbrook. 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. 60% of Brown Edge’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 A− for Brown Edge, and how it is built
A fairly firm grade. Built on 164 graded crimes over three years. The grade adds violent and sexual offences and crimes against homes and vehicles per resident and ranks Brown Edge 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, Brown Edge runs highest on public order (8 per 1,000 against 2.4), criminal damage & arson (4.6 per 1,000 against 3.2) and anti-social behaviour (7.6 per 1,000 against 5.3).
Show as a table
| Category | In the grade | Reports | Per 1,000 | Typical |
|---|---|---|---|---|
| Violence & sexual offences | Violent | 43 | 18.1 | 16.6 |
| Public order | not graded | 19 | 8 | 2.4 |
| Anti-social behaviour | not graded | 18 | 7.6 | 5.3 |
| Criminal damage & arson | Home & vehicle | 11 | 4.6 | 3.2 |
| Shoplifting | not graded | 9 | 3.8 | 0 |
| Other theft | not graded | 6 | 2.5 | 2.5 |
| Vehicle crime | Home & vehicle | 6 | 2.5 | 1.5 |
| Burglary | Home & vehicle | 3 | 1.3 | 1.6 |
| Drugs | not graded | 1 | 0.4 | 0.6 |
| Other crime | not graded | 1 | 0.4 | 1.1 |
| Bicycle theft | not graded | 0 | 0 | 0 |
| Possession of weapons | Violent | 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.
176th of 550: Brown Edge 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+ |
| … | ||||||
| 89 | Rolleston on Dove Staffordshire | 2,902 | 14.4 | 4.1 | 1.5 | A |
| … | ||||||
| 117 | Whittington Staffordshire | 2,477 | 10.9 | 8.9 | 2.7 | A− |
| … | ||||||
| 142 | Coven Staffordshire | 2,399 | 15 | 6.4 | 3.6 | A− |
| … | ||||||
| 151 | Yarnfield Staffordshire | 2,144 | 18 | 4 | 1.9 | A− |
| … | ||||||
| 173 | Hingham Norfolk | 2,304 | 18.1 | 4.8 | 2.6 | A− |
| 174 | Burgh le Marsh Lincolnshire | 2,159 | 17.1 | 5.7 | 6.6 | A− |
| 175 | Bishop's Tachbrook Warwickshire | 2,086 | 16.8 | 6.2 | 1.1 | A− |
| 176 | Brown Edge Staffordshire | 2,374 | 15.3 | 7.7 | 4.9 | A− |
| 177 | Baschurch Shropshire | 2,007 | 18.6 | 4.5 | 0.7 | A− |
| 178 | Llanfair Pwllgwyngyll Gwynedd | 2,905 | 17.6 | 5.6 | 5.1 | A− |
| 179 | Pevensey Bay East Sussex | 2,890 | 17.4 | 5.8 | 3.7 | A− |
| … | ||||||
| 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 Brown Edge, and others in Staffordshire.
Crime in Brown Edge 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 8 burglaries, vehicle crimes or acts of criminal damage, plus 6 shoplifting and theft reports, in the 12 months to August 2026. Each dot is one resident; each coloured dot is one recorded crime.
Violent crime held steady over the year
“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 -4% (towns its size +3%), homes and vehicles -20% (towns its size +0%).
No one died in a collision on Brown Edge’s roads in 2021–2025
Police recorded 5 collisions with injuries inside Brown Edge 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 Brown Edge is one of them.
Counting serious injuries too, a town of Brown Edge’s size at the median for UK towns of 1,000 to 2,500 people would see about 2 people killed or seriously injured in five years; Brown Edge 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 Brown Edge’s built-up area, 2021–2025. Described here; not part of the Safety Grade.
Crime in the places around Brown Edge
| Town | People | Violent | Homes & vehicles | Safety |
|---|---|---|---|---|
| Brown Edge | 2,374 | 15.3 | 7.7 | A− |
| Endon | 2,655 | 22.4 | 9.4 | B− |
| Biddulph Moor | 1,286 | 15.3 | 8.3 | B+ |
| Biddulph | 17,490 | 33.5 | 12.2 | C |
| Harriseahead, Mow Cop and Newchapel | 3,637 | 18.2 | 7.9 | B+ |
| Cheddleton | 4,027 | 14.2 | 3.2 | A |
| Werrington | 6,012 | 31.5 | 7.4 | C+ |
| Kidsgrove | 15,598 | 36 | 10.5 | C |
Brown Edge records more graded crime per resident than 1 of its 7 neighbours. Cheddleton, 4.2 miles away, records 14.2 violent and sexual offences per 1,000 residents a year (3-year average), against Brown Edge’s 15.3.
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 Brown Edge 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 Brown Edge
Is Brown Edge safe?
Police recorded 15.3 violent and sexual offences and 7.7 burglaries, vehicle crimes and acts of criminal damage per 1,000 residents a year over the three years to August 2026 (police.uk, inside Brown Edge’s built-up area). That earns an A− for safety: less crime per resident than 75% of UK towns. Among 550 UK towns of 2,000 to 3,000 people, Brown Edge is 176th from the least crime. 60% of residents live in neighbourhoods in England’s lowest-crime 10%.
Is crime going up in Brown Edge?
In the 12 months to August 2026, against the 12 months before, violent crime held steady, burglary, vehicle crime and damage fell 20%, shoplifting and theft rose 15% and anti-social behaviour rose 125%. Across UK towns of 1,000 to 2,500 people, violent crime held steady.
What is the most common crime in Brown Edge?
Violence & sexual offences: 43 in the 12 months to August 2026, which in police.uk includes harassment, stalking and assault without injury. Next came public order (19) and criminal damage & arson (11), with 18 reports of anti-social behaviour.
How does Brown Edge compare with Stoke-on-Trent?
Stoke-on-Trent records 55.1 violent and sexual offences and 23.4 crimes against homes and vehicles per 1,000 residents a year, against Brown Edge’s 15.3 and 7.7, 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.