Crime in Newcastle upon Tyne
Recorded crime in Newcastle upon Tyne is 1.3 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.
320,605 residents in 180 neighbourhoods. 2% live in busy town or city centres.
- Safety in the UK
- 2/10High crime
- Safety in the world
- 7/10Low crime
- Living
- 7.5/10Good
- 5-year change
- −13%fewer crimes
Crime over 5 years
Down 13% in 5 years Recorded crimes in Newcastle upon Tyne, anti-social behaviour left out.
What is recorded
Crime severity: 1.3× the England and Wales average. 116 recorded crimes per 1,000 residents a year.
- Violence and sexual offences (assaults, harassment, sexual offences): 61% of the harm here
- Burglary: 13% of the harm here
- Robbery: 6% of the harm here
"Violence and sexual offences" is 61% 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: 42 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 | 1.2 |
| Burglary | 5.7 |
| Violence and sexual offences (assaults, harassment, sexual offences) | 40.8 |
| Drugs | 3.8 |
| Possession of weapons (knives and other weapons) | 1.2 |
| Other crime | 2.4 |
| Other theft | 11.4 |
| Theft from the person (pickpocketing, bag snatching) | 2.1 |
| Vehicle crime (cars stolen and broken into) | 6.6 |
| Criminal damage and arson (vandalism) | 13.7 |
| Public order | 13.2 |
| Bicycle theft | 2.2 |
| Shoplifting | 12.1 |
What crimes are recorded in Newcastle upon Tyne
108.1 crimes per 1,000 residents were recorded in Newcastle upon Tyne 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.
| Type | Crimes in 2025/26 | Per 1,000 residents | Change on 2024/25 |
|---|---|---|---|
| Cars stolen | 494 | 1.5 | Up 23% |
| Cars broken into | 992 | 3.1 | Down 10% |
| Vehicle tampering | 411 | 1.3 | Down 29% |
| Vandalism to homes | 1,068 | 3.3 | Down 13% |
| Vandalism to other buildings | 371 | 1.2 | Down 21% |
| Vandalism to vehicles | 1,069 | 3.3 | About the same |
| Arson | 249 | 0.78 | About the same |
| Burglary of homes | 867 | 2.7 | About the same |
| Burglary of businesses | 421 | 1.3 | Down 16% |
| Homicide (murder and manslaughter) | 2 | - | - |
| Carrying a knife or blade | 170 | 0.53 | Down 4% |
| Carrying other weapons (including guns) | 238 | 0.74 | About the same |
| Robbery of people | 347 | 1.1 | Up 6% |
| Robbery of businesses | 388 | 1.2 | Up 367% |
| Violence with injury | 3,975 | 12.4 | Down 6% |
| Violence without injury | 4,533 | 14.1 | About the same |
| Stalking and harassment | 3,251 | 10.1 | Up 6% |
| Sexual offences | 1,440 | 4.5 | Up 3% |
| Shoplifting | 4,687 | 14.6 | Down 5% |
| Bicycle theft | 370 | 1.2 | Down 21% |
| Theft from the person (pickpocketing, bag snatching) | 447 | 1.4 | Down 9% |
| Drug dealing | 480 | 1.5 | About the same |
| Drug possession | 883 | 2.8 | Down 5% |
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.
Northumbria Police area: 1,151 offences involving a knife or sharp instrument in 2025/26 (1,056 the year before). This covers the whole police force area, not only Newcastle upon Tyne.
Source: Home Office, police recorded knife crime by police force.
Police and Crime Commissioner: Susan Dungworth (Northumbria) →
How often crimes lead to a charge
In Newcastle upon Tyne, 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) | 13,880 | 5% | 2% | 0% | 40% | 52% |
| Shoplifting | 4,695 | 21% | 1% | 0% | 55% | 23% |
| Public order | 3,469 | 7% | 1% | 0% | 48% | 45% |
| Criminal damage and arson (vandalism) | 3,399 | 5% | 2% | 0% | 69% | 24% |
| Other theft | 2,867 | 2% | 0% | 0% | 75% | 23% |
| Vehicle crime (cars stolen and broken into) | 1,935 | 4% | 0% | 0% | 83% | 12% |
| Drugs | 1,604 | 17% | 8% | 0% | 20% | 55% |
| Burglary | 1,559 | 11% | 1% | 0% | 71% | 17% |
| Other crime | 884 | 7% | 1% | 0% | 31% | 60% |
| Robbery | 509 | 14% | 1% | 0% | 65% | 20% |
| Theft from the person (pickpocketing, bag snatching) | 468 | 1% | 0% | 0% | 80% | 19% |
| Bicycle theft | 397 | 1% | 0% | 0% | 92% | 6% |
| Possession of weapons (knives and other weapons) | 389 | 33% | 3% | 0% | 32% | 32% |
Uses the latest outcome police have recorded so far. 38% of these crimes are still open, so the final figures may be a little higher.
Road collisions
Newcastle upon Tyne, 2023 to 2025: 454 road collisions a year with someone hurt, 101 of them with someone killed or seriously injured. 16 collisions were fatal in those 3 years.
1.4 a year per 1,000 residents (Great Britain 1.5). 22% 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 Newcastle upon Tyne
Postcode districts in Newcastle upon Tyne
Embed this on your site: a free live safety card for Newcastle upon Tyne.
Questions about crime in Newcastle upon Tyne
- Is Newcastle upon Tyne a safe place to live?
- Newcastle upon Tyne scores 2 out of 10 for safety (high crime), compared with every neighbourhood in England, Wales and Northern Ireland.
- Is crime going up or down in Newcastle upon Tyne?
- Down 13% over 5 years, from 37,232 recorded crimes a year to 32,407.
- What is the most common crime in Newcastle upon Tyne?
- The most common recorded crime is violence and sexual offences (assaults, harassment, sexual offences), about 41 per 1,000 residents a year.
- How often does crime lead to a charge in Newcastle upon Tyne?
- In Newcastle upon Tyne, 8% of crimes reported between September 2024 and August 2025 led to someone being charged or summonsed (England and Wales: 9%). 52% were closed without a suspect being identified.
- How many burglaries are solved in Newcastle upon Tyne?
- Of 1,559 burglaries reported in Newcastle upon Tyne between September 2024 and August 2025, 11% led to someone being charged or summonsed and 71% were closed with no suspect identified.
- How many cars are stolen in Newcastle upon Tyne?
- In Newcastle upon Tyne, the police recorded 494 cars stolen in 2025/26 (April 2025 to March 2026), 1.5 per 1,000 residents, up 23% on the year before.
- Is vandalism common in Newcastle upon Tyne?
- 2,508 acts of vandalism to homes, other buildings and vehicles were recorded in Newcastle upon Tyne in 2025/26, 7.8 per 1,000 residents, 1.6 times the England and Wales average.
- How many murders were there in Newcastle upon Tyne last year?
- 2 homicides (murder or manslaughter) were recorded in Newcastle upon Tyne in 2025/26, against 4 the year before.