An industrial Yorkshire town has overtaken a popular seaside resort as the most dangerous place to live in England and Wales, according to the latest Home Office crime figures. Data obtained by the Mirror shows that Middlesbrough in North Yorkshire now has the highest crime rate of any area outside central London and the City of Westminster, with 150 crimes per 1,000 residents.
Blackpool in Lancashire held the unfortunate top spot in 2025, but its crime rate has improved by 4 per cent over the past year. In contrast, Middlesbrough saw a slight increase of 1 per cent, resulting in 23,419 recorded crimes in the 12 months to March 2026.
Crime trends across England and Wales
The Home Office figures, for the year ending March 2026, reveal a rise in several serious offence types: sexual offences increased by 4 per cent, stalking and harassment by 4 per cent, robbery by 10 per cent, drug crime by 12 per cent, and possession of weapons by 8 per cent. However, the general trend of falling crime over the past decade continues. More than five million non-fraud offences were recorded, a 1 per cent drop compared to the previous 12 months.
Highest and lowest crime rates
Crime rates, which account for population size, are considered the fairest way to compare areas of different sizes. After Middlesbrough, Blackpool has the second-highest crime rate with 146 offences per 1,000 residents. Manchester is third (143 per 1,000), followed by Hartlepool (134) and Bristol (131). The highest volumes of crime are still in the largest cities, such as Birmingham, Leeds, and Manchester.
At the other end of the scale, Broadland in Norfolk has retained its title as the safest place to live in mainland England and Wales, with a crime rate of just 35 per 1,000 residents.
