Photo: Adrian Cable · CC BY-SA 2.0Set against UK towns of 1,000 to 2,500 people, Martlesham records more crime than 79%
Criminal damage & arson stands out: 7.1 per 1,000 residents in Martlesham, against 3.2 in a typical town its size, with 14 recorded in the 12 months to August 2026. Violent crime was down 29% in a year. The yearly rates were 26.8 violent and sexual offences and 10.5 incidents of burglary, vehicle crime and damage per 1,000 residents.
Crimes and reports per 1,000 residents (Census 2021) a year, September 2023 to August 2026.
What stands out about safety in Martlesham
Violent crime fell over the year
In the 12 months to August 2026 police recorded 29% less violent crime per resident in Martlesham 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, Martlesham has the 1,371st lowest rate of graded crime: lower than Llandeilo, Market Bosworth and Friday Bridge, higher than Wiveliscombe, Welham Green and Talgarth. Towns its size ↓
Written from the police.uk and government data on this page. Figures are crimes police recorded, not convictions.
Martlesham: C+ for safety, and why
A fairly firm grade. Built on 221 graded crimes over three years. The grade adds violent and sexual offences and crimes against homes and vehicles per resident and ranks Martlesham 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 Martlesham 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 -29% (towns its size +3%), homes and vehicles -47% (towns its size +0%).
What police recorded in the last 12 months
Against the typical town its size, Martlesham runs highest on criminal damage & arson (7.1 per 1,000 against 3.2) and violence & sexual offences (21.3 per 1,000 against 16.6).
Show as a table
| Category | In the grade | Reports | Per 1,000 | Typical |
|---|---|---|---|---|
| Violence & sexual offences | Violent | 42 | 21.3 | 16.6 |
| Criminal damage & arson | Home & vehicle | 14 | 7.1 | 3.2 |
| Anti-social behaviour | not graded | 9 | 4.6 | 5.3 |
| Other crime | not graded | 8 | 4 | 1.1 |
| Public order | not graded | 4 | 2 | 2.4 |
| Drugs | not graded | 4 | 2 | 0.6 |
| Possession of weapons | Violent | 3 | 1.5 | 0 |
| Other theft | not graded | 2 | 1 | 2.5 |
| Burglary | Home & vehicle | 1 | 0.5 | 1.6 |
| Vehicle crime | Home & vehicle | 1 | 0.5 | 1.5 |
| Shoplifting | not graded | 0 | 0 | 0 |
| 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.
Among 1,764 towns its size, Martlesham ranks 1,371st for the least graded crime
| # | Town | People | Violent | Homes & vehicles | Shops & theft | Safety |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| 1 | Clipsham Rutland | 1,150 | 0 | 0 | 0 | A+ |
| … | ||||||
| 17 | Great Bricett Suffolk | 1,518 | 5.7 | 2 | 1.1 | A+ |
| … | ||||||
| 54 | Elmsett Suffolk | 1,001 | 7 | 3 | 0.3 | A+ |
| … | ||||||
| 58 | Sutton Common Suffolk | 1,262 | 9 | 1.3 | 2.4 | A+ |
| … | ||||||
| 104 | Laxfield Suffolk | 1,004 | 9.3 | 3 | 2 | A+ |
| … | ||||||
| 1368 | Wiveliscombe Somerset | 2,316 | 29.4 | 7.8 | 3 | C+ |
| 1369 | Welham Green Hertfordshire | 2,962 | 19 | 18.1 | 4.1 | C+ |
| 1370 | Talgarth Powys | 1,252 | 26.7 | 10.5 | 4.2 | C+ |
| 1371 | Martlesham Suffolk | 1,976 | 26.8 | 10.5 | 2.5 | C+ |
| 1372 | Sutton Valence Kent | 1,457 | 24 | 13.3 | 5.3 | C+ |
| 1373 | Gorefield Cambridgeshire | 1,070 | 26.2 | 11.2 | 4.7 | C+ |
| 1374 | Langstone Gwent | 2,912 | 27 | 10.4 | 6.9 | C+ |
| … | ||||||
| 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 Martlesham, and others in Suffolk.
Crime in Martlesham 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 1 shoplifting and theft report, 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 Martlesham’s roads in 2021–2025
Police recorded 5 collisions with injuries inside Martlesham in five years. 0 people were killed or seriously injured.
Most UK towns of 1,000 to 2,500 people (94%) had no road deaths in these five years, and Martlesham is one of them.
Counting serious injuries too, a town of Martlesham’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; Martlesham had 0.
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 Martlesham’s built-up area, 2021–2025. Described here; not part of the Safety Grade.
Crime in the places around Martlesham
| Town | People | Violent | Homes & vehicles | Safety |
|---|---|---|---|---|
| Martlesham | 1,976 | 26.8 | 10.5 | C+ |
| Martlesham Heath | 2,730 | 61.5 | 13.9 | D |
| Kesgrave | 14,947 | 13 | 3.3 | A |
| Woodbridge | 10,146 | 20.7 | 9.6 | B |
| Grundisburgh | 1,424 | 12.4 | 4 | A |
| Melton | 1,608 | 23.6 | 9.5 | B− |
| Sutton Common | 1,262 | 9 | 1.3 | A+ |
| Kirton | 1,245 | 10.4 | 3.8 | A+ |
Martlesham records more graded crime per resident than 6 of its 7 neighbours; only Martlesham Heath records more. Kesgrave, 1.7 miles away, records 13 violent and sexual offences per 1,000 residents a year (3-year average), against Martlesham’s 26.8.
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 Martlesham 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 Martlesham
Is Martlesham safe?
Police recorded 26.8 violent and sexual offences and 10.5 burglaries, vehicle crimes and acts of criminal damage per 1,000 residents a year over the three years to August 2026 (police.uk, inside Martlesham’s built-up area). That earns a C+ for safety: less crime per resident than 40% of UK towns. Among 1,764 UK towns of 1,000 to 3,000 people, Martlesham is 1,371st from the least crime.
Is crime going up in Martlesham?
In the 12 months to August 2026, against the 12 months before, violent crime fell 29%, burglary, vehicle crime and damage fell 47%, shoplifting and theft fell 60% and anti-social behaviour rose 29%. Across UK towns of 1,000 to 2,500 people, violent crime held steady.
What is the most common crime in Martlesham?
Violence & sexual offences: 42 in the 12 months to August 2026, which in police.uk includes harassment, stalking and assault without injury. Next came criminal damage & arson (14) and other crime (8), with 9 reports of anti-social behaviour.
How does Martlesham compare with Ipswich?
Ipswich records 41 violent and sexual offences and 14.9 crimes against homes and vehicles per 1,000 residents a year, against Martlesham’s 26.8 and 10.5, 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.