Crime in East Devon
Recorded crime in East Devon is 0.5 times the England and Wales average. Over 5 years it has risen 26%. Most of the harm comes from violence and sexual offences (assaults, harassment, sexual offences). Police data to August 2026.
158,239 residents in 88 neighbourhoods.
- Safety in the UK
- 8/10Low crime
- Safety in the world
- 8/10Low crime
- Living
- 5.4/10Fair
- 5-year change
- +26%more crimes
Crime over 5 years
Up 26% in 5 years Recorded crimes in East Devon, anti-social behaviour left out.
What is recorded
Crime severity: 0.5× the England and Wales average. 36 recorded crimes per 1,000 residents a year.
- Violence and sexual offences (assaults, harassment, sexual offences): 71% of the harm here
- Burglary: 12% of the harm here
- Other theft: 5% of the harm here
"Violence and sexual offences" is 71% 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: 11 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 | 0.1 |
| Burglary | 1.7 |
| Violence and sexual offences (assaults, harassment, sexual offences) | 16.8 |
| Drugs | 1.2 |
| Possession of weapons (knives and other weapons) | 0.4 |
| Other crime | 0.9 |
| Other theft | 3.3 |
| Theft from the person (pickpocketing, bag snatching) | 0.2 |
| Vehicle crime (cars stolen and broken into) | 1.5 |
| Criminal damage and arson (vandalism) | 4.7 |
| Public order | 2.7 |
| Bicycle theft | 0.3 |
| Shoplifting | 1.8 |
What crimes are recorded in East Devon
45.6 crimes per 1,000 residents were recorded in the East and Mid Devon partnership area in 2025/26 (England and Wales: 83.2).
Crimes recorded by the police, April 2025 to March 2026. Source: Home Office, police recorded crime by community safety partnership. Figures for the East and Mid Devon community safety partnership, which covers East Devon and Mid Devon.
| Type | Crimes in 2025/26 | Per 1,000 residents | Change on 2024/25 |
|---|---|---|---|
| Cars stolen | 150 | 0.62 | Up 20% |
| Cars broken into | 130 | 0.53 | Up 23% |
| Vehicle tampering | 27 | 0.11 | Up 50% |
| Vandalism to homes | 275 | 1.1 | About the same |
| Vandalism to other buildings | 106 | 0.44 | Up 16% |
| Vandalism to vehicles | 371 | 1.5 | Down 4% |
| Arson | 36 | 0.15 | Down 29% |
| Burglary of homes | 179 | 0.74 | Down 27% |
| Burglary of businesses | 150 | 0.62 | Down 17% |
| Homicide (murder and manslaughter) | 3 | - | - |
| Carrying a knife or blade | 65 | 0.27 | Up 51% |
| Carrying other weapons (including guns) | 91 | 0.37 | Up 10% |
| Robbery of people | 41 | 0.17 | Up 14% |
| Robbery of businesses | 18 | 0.07 | Up 80% |
| Violence with injury | 1,316 | 5.4 | Down 4% |
| Violence without injury | 2,032 | 8.4 | About the same |
| Stalking and harassment | 1,989 | 8.2 | Up 23% |
| Sexual offences | 618 | 2.5 | Down 11% |
| Shoplifting | 571 | 2.3 | Down 8% |
| Bicycle theft | 56 | 0.23 | Up 27% |
| Theft from the person (pickpocketing, bag snatching) | 52 | 0.21 | Down 4% |
| Drug dealing | 68 | 0.28 | Down 45% |
| Drug possession | 190 | 0.78 | Down 12% |
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.
Devon and Cornwall Police area: 862 offences involving a knife or sharp instrument in 2025/26 (876 the year before). This covers the whole police force area, not only East Devon.
Source: Home Office, police recorded knife crime by police force.
How often crimes lead to a charge
In East Devon, 5% of crimes reported between September 2024 and August 2025 led to someone being charged or summonsed (England and Wales: 9%).
- Charged or summonsed
- Caution or other action
- Suspect found, not prosecuted
- No suspect identified
- Still open
Show as a table
| Type | Crimes | Charged or summonsed | Caution or other action | Suspect found, not prosecuted | No suspect identified | Still open |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| Violence and sexual offences (assaults, harassment, sexual offences) | 3,527 | 4% | 4% | 78% | 9% | 6% |
| Criminal damage and arson (vandalism) | 751 | 3% | 3% | 50% | 41% | 4% |
| Other theft | 520 | 2% | 1% | 43% | 49% | 6% |
| Public order | 472 | 4% | 4% | 68% | 19% | 6% |
| Shoplifting | 319 | 13% | 3% | 39% | 41% | 3% |
| Burglary | 263 | 5% | 1% | 23% | 66% | 5% |
| Drugs | 211 | 20% | 33% | 30% | 4% | 13% |
| Other crime | 193 | 5% | 5% | 69% | 9% | 12% |
| Vehicle crime (cars stolen and broken into) | 136 | 5% | 1% | 36% | 50% | 8% |
| Possession of weapons (knives and other weapons) | 87 | 14% | 10% | 47% | 9% | 20% |
Uses the latest outcome police have recorded so far. 6% of these crimes are still open, so the final figures may be a little higher.
Road collisions
East Devon, 2023 to 2025: 235 road collisions a year with someone hurt, 49 of them with someone killed or seriously injured. 15 collisions were fatal in those 3 years.
1.5 a year per 1,000 residents (Great Britain 1.5). 21% of them killed or seriously injured someone (Great Britain 26%).
Collisions on public roads that the police recorded where someone was hurt, counted where they happened, so busy through roads and town centres with few residents come out high. Serious and slight use the Department for Transport's adjusted severity, comparable between police forces. Source: Department for Transport road casualty statistics (STATS19), Open Government Licence v3.0.
Towns and cities in East Devon
Postcode districts in East Devon
Questions about crime in East Devon
- Is East Devon a safe place to live?
- East Devon scores 8 out of 10 for safety (low crime), compared with every neighbourhood in England, Wales and Northern Ireland.
- Is crime going up or down in East Devon?
- Up 26% over 5 years, from 5,343 recorded crimes a year to 6,709.
- What is the most common crime in East Devon?
- The most common recorded crime is violence and sexual offences (assaults, harassment, sexual offences), about 17 per 1,000 residents a year.
- How often does crime lead to a charge in East Devon?
- In East Devon, 5% of crimes reported between September 2024 and August 2025 led to someone being charged or summonsed (England and Wales: 9%). 21% were closed without a suspect being identified.
- How many burglaries are solved in East Devon?
- Of 263 burglaries reported in East Devon between September 2024 and August 2025, 5% led to someone being charged or summonsed and 66% were closed with no suspect identified.
- How many cars are stolen in East Devon?
- In the East and Mid Devon community safety partnership (East Devon and Mid Devon), the police recorded 150 cars stolen in 2025/26 (April 2025 to March 2026), 0.6 per 1,000 residents, up 20% on the year before.
- Is vandalism common in East Devon?
- 752 acts of vandalism to homes, other buildings and vehicles were recorded in the East and Mid Devon community safety partnership (East Devon and Mid Devon) in 2025/26, 3.1 per 1,000 residents, 0.6 times the England and Wales average.
- How many murders were there in East Devon last year?
- 3 homicides (murder or manslaughter) were recorded in the East and Mid Devon community safety partnership (East Devon and Mid Devon) in 2025/26, against 3 the year before.