Crime in Epping Forest
Recorded crime in Epping Forest is 0.9 times the England and Wales average. Over 5 years it has fallen 13%. Most of the harm comes from violence and sexual offences (assaults, harassment, sexual offences). Police data to August 2026.
137,451 residents in 78 neighbourhoods.
- Safety in the UK
- 4/10Above average crime
- Safety in the world
- 7/10Low crime
- Living
- 6.3/10Fair
- 5-year change
- −13%fewer crimes
Crime over 5 years
Down 13% in 5 years Recorded crimes in Epping Forest, 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): 56% of the harm here
- Burglary: 18% of the harm here
- Robbery: 6% of the harm here
Anti-social behaviour: 16 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 | 0.9 |
| Burglary | 5.6 |
| Violence and sexual offences (assaults, harassment, sexual offences) | 27.2 |
| Drugs | 2.7 |
| Possession of weapons (knives and other weapons) | 0.6 |
| Other crime | 1.5 |
| Other theft | 6.4 |
| Theft from the person (pickpocketing, bag snatching) | 0.6 |
| Vehicle crime (cars stolen and broken into) | 11.3 |
| Criminal damage and arson (vandalism) | 6.8 |
| Public order | 6.4 |
| Bicycle theft | 0.3 |
| Shoplifting | 4.6 |
What crimes are recorded in Epping Forest
63.3 crimes per 1,000 residents were recorded in Epping Forest in 2025/26 (England and Wales: 83.2).
Our total for April 2025 to March 2026: 9,335. Home Office recorded crime: 8,703 (7% apart).
Crimes recorded by the police, April 2025 to March 2026. Source: Home Office, police recorded crime by community safety partnership.
| Type | Crimes in 2025/26 | Per 1,000 residents | Change on 2024/25 |
|---|---|---|---|
| Cars stolen | 478 | 3.5 | Down 17% |
| Cars broken into | 382 | 2.8 | Down 27% |
| Vehicle tampering | 127 | 0.92 | Down 24% |
| Vandalism to homes | 171 | 1.2 | Up 8% |
| Vandalism to other buildings | 59 | 0.43 | About the same |
| Vandalism to vehicles | 249 | 1.8 | Up 9% |
| Arson | 73 | 0.53 | Up 43% |
| Burglary of homes | 300 | 2.2 | About the same |
| Burglary of businesses | 131 | 0.95 | Down 38% |
| Homicide (murder and manslaughter) | 0 | - | - |
| Carrying a knife or blade | 23 | 0.17 | Down 56% |
| Carrying other weapons (including guns) | 41 | 0.30 | Up 5% |
| Robbery of people | 84 | 0.61 | Up 4% |
| Robbery of businesses | 23 | 0.17 | Up 28% |
| Violence with injury | 753 | 5.5 | About the same |
| Violence without injury | 1,521 | 11.1 | Up 13% |
| Stalking and harassment | 1,092 | 7.9 | Up 20% |
| Sexual offences | 244 | 1.8 | Up 2% |
| Shoplifting | 649 | 4.7 | Down 40% |
| Bicycle theft | 26 | 0.19 | Up 8% |
| Theft from the person (pickpocketing, bag snatching) | 65 | 0.47 | Down 26% |
| Drug dealing | 251 | 1.8 | Up 6% |
| Drug possession | 245 | 1.8 | Up 10% |
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.
Essex Police area: 1,373 offences involving a knife or sharp instrument in 2025/26 (1,500 the year before). This covers the whole police force area, not only Epping Forest.
Source: Home Office, police recorded knife crime by police force.
How often crimes lead to a charge
In Epping Forest, 8% 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) | 3,589 | 6% | 7% | 64% | 17% | 5% |
| Vehicle crime (cars stolen and broken into) | 1,214 | 3% | 0% | 8% | 81% | 8% |
| Shoplifting | 920 | 15% | 4% | 5% | 75% | 1% |
| Criminal damage and arson (vandalism) | 773 | 6% | 5% | 25% | 59% | 5% |
| Public order | 693 | 14% | 6% | 40% | 35% | 5% |
| Other theft | 639 | 2% | 2% | 21% | 69% | 6% |
| Burglary | 543 | 9% | 1% | 12% | 75% | 3% |
| Drugs | 499 | 11% | 39% | 4% | 42% | 4% |
| Other crime | 225 | 23% | 6% | 43% | 17% | 11% |
| Robbery | 120 | 6% | 1% | 25% | 58% | 10% |
| Theft from the person (pickpocketing, bag snatching) | 85 | 4% | 0% | 25% | 52% | 20% |
| Possession of weapons (knives and other weapons) | 80 | 45% | 10% | 23% | 13% | 10% |
Uses the latest outcome police have recorded so far. 5% of these crimes are still open, so the final figures may be a little higher.
Road collisions
Epping Forest, 2023 to 2025: 315 road collisions a year with someone hurt, 87 of them with someone killed or seriously injured. 27 collisions were fatal in those 3 years.
2.3 a year per 1,000 residents (Great Britain 1.5). 28% 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 Epping Forest
Postcode districts in Epping Forest
Questions about crime in Epping Forest
- Is Epping Forest a safe place to live?
- Epping Forest 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 Epping Forest?
- Down 13% over 5 years, from 10,751 recorded crimes a year to 9,344.
- What is the most common crime in Epping Forest?
- The most common recorded crime is violence and sexual offences (assaults, harassment, sexual offences), about 27 per 1,000 residents a year.
- How often does crime lead to a charge in Epping Forest?
- In Epping Forest, 8% of crimes reported between September 2024 and August 2025 led to someone being charged or summonsed (England and Wales: 9%). 45% were closed without a suspect being identified.
- How many burglaries are solved in Epping Forest?
- Of 543 burglaries reported in Epping Forest between September 2024 and August 2025, 9% led to someone being charged or summonsed and 75% were closed with no suspect identified.
- How many cars are stolen in Epping Forest?
- In Epping Forest, the police recorded 478 cars stolen in 2025/26 (April 2025 to March 2026), 3.5 per 1,000 residents, down 17% on the year before.
- Is vandalism common in Epping Forest?
- 479 acts of vandalism to homes, other buildings and vehicles were recorded in Epping Forest in 2025/26, 3.5 per 1,000 residents, 0.7 times the England and Wales average.
- How many murders were there in Epping Forest last year?
- No homicides (murder or manslaughter) were recorded in Epping Forest in 2025/26, against 2 the year before.