Crime in Cumberland
Recorded crime in Cumberland is 0.9 times the England and Wales average. Over 5 years it has fallen 8%. Most of the harm comes from violence and sexual offences (assaults, harassment, sexual offences). Police data to August 2026.
280,495 residents in 177 neighbourhoods. 1% live in busy town or city centres.
- Safety
- 4/10Above average crime
- Living
- 4.6/10Fair
- 5-year change
- −8%fewer crimes
Crime over 5 years
Down 8% in 5 years Recorded crimes in Cumberland, anti-social behaviour left out.
What is recorded
Crime severity: 0.9× the England and Wales average. 75 recorded crimes per 1,000 residents a year.
- Violence and sexual offences (assaults, harassment, sexual offences): 73% of the harm here
- Burglary: 10% of the harm here
- Drugs: 4% of the harm here
"Violence and sexual offences" is 73% of the harm here. It is a broad police category: most of these crimes are assaults without injury, harassment and threats, often indoors between people who know each other, and only a small part are sexual or serious violent offences. Police data does not say which, so each one is weighted at the England and Wales average for the category, which can overstate a quiet residential area.
Anti-social behaviour: 14 incidents per 1,000 residents a year, not scored. Not a crime, so it is not part of the Safety score.
Crime by type
Recorded crimes per 1,000 residents per year, most serious first, not counting anti-social behaviour.
| Type | Per 1,000 a year |
|---|---|
| Robbery | 0.3 |
| Burglary | 3.2 |
| Violence and sexual offences (assaults, harassment, sexual offences) | 34.5 |
| Drugs | 2.5 |
| Possession of weapons (knives and other weapons) | 0.7 |
| Other crime | 1.8 |
| Other theft | 5.3 |
| Theft from the person (pickpocketing, bag snatching) | 0.3 |
| Vehicle crime (cars stolen and broken into) | 2.0 |
| Criminal damage and arson (vandalism) | 10.8 |
| Public order | 8.1 |
| Bicycle theft | 0.5 |
| Shoplifting | 5.3 |
What crimes are recorded in Cumberland
Crimes recorded by the police, April 2025 to March 2026. Source: Home Office, police recorded crime by community safety partnership. Figures for the Allerdale, Carlisle and Copeland community safety partnerships, which together cover Cumberland.
| Type | Crimes in 2025/26 | Per 1,000 residents | Change on 2024/25 |
|---|---|---|---|
| Cars stolen | 201 | 0.72 | About the same |
| Cars broken into | 162 | 0.58 | Down 17% |
| Vehicle tampering | 91 | 0.32 | Up 8% |
| Vandalism to homes | 701 | 2.5 | Down 3% |
| Vandalism to other buildings | 214 | 0.76 | Down 25% |
| Vandalism to vehicles | 644 | 2.3 | Down 6% |
| Arson | 77 | 0.27 | Up 8% |
| Burglary of homes | 231 | 0.82 | Down 23% |
| Burglary of businesses | 200 | 0.71 | Up 3% |
| Homicide (murder and manslaughter) | 1 | - | - |
| Carrying a knife or blade | 158 | 0.56 | Down 4% |
| Carrying other weapons (including guns) | 145 | 0.52 | Up 10% |
| Robbery of people | 58 | 0.21 | Down 8% |
| Robbery of businesses | 20 | 0.07 | Up 43% |
| Violence with injury | 2,481 | 8.8 | Down 3% |
| Violence without injury | 3,726 | 13.3 | Down 3% |
| Stalking and harassment | 3,070 | 10.9 | About the same |
| Sexual offences | 946 | 3.4 | Down 8% |
| Shoplifting | 1,444 | 5.1 | Down 2% |
| Bicycle theft | 128 | 0.46 | Down 10% |
| Theft from the person (pickpocketing, bag snatching) | 77 | 0.27 | Up 5% |
| Drug dealing | 134 | 0.48 | Up 6% |
| Drug possession | 877 | 3.1 | About the same |
Under 10 a year: no rate or change, the numbers are too small to compare. These are council-area figures: police.uk street-level data, used for the map and the Safety score, only has the broad categories, and no source publishes murders or stabbings by street.
Cumbria Police area: 178 offences involving a knife or sharp instrument in 2025/26 (155 the year before). This covers the whole police force area, not only Cumberland.
Source: Home Office, police recorded knife crime by police force.
Towns and cities in Cumberland
Postcode districts in Cumberland
Questions about crime in Cumberland
- Is Cumberland a safe place to live?
- Cumberland scores 4 out of 10 for safety (above average crime), compared with every neighbourhood in England, Wales and Northern Ireland.
- Is crime going up or down in Cumberland?
- Down 8% over 5 years, from 23,665 recorded crimes a year to 21,862.
- What is the most common crime in Cumberland?
- The most common recorded crime is violence and sexual offences (assaults, harassment, sexual offences), about 34 per 1,000 residents a year.
- How many cars are stolen in Cumberland?
- In the Allerdale, Carlisle and Copeland community safety partnerships (Cumberland), the police recorded 201 cars stolen in 2025/26 (April 2025 to March 2026), 0.7 per 1,000 residents, about the same as the year before.
- Is vandalism common in Cumberland?
- 1,559 acts of vandalism to homes, other buildings and vehicles were recorded in the Allerdale, Carlisle and Copeland community safety partnerships (Cumberland) in 2025/26, 5.6 per 1,000 residents, 1.2 times the England and Wales average.
- How many murders were there in Cumberland last year?
- 1 homicide (murder or manslaughter) was recorded in the Allerdale, Carlisle and Copeland community safety partnerships (Cumberland) in 2025/26, against 0 the year before.