Shaftesbury, Dorset Crime and Safety Statistics

Shaftesbury Crime Overview

Shaftesbury is among the top 5 most dangerous small towns in Dorset, and is the 43rd most dangerous overall out of Dorset's 274 towns, villages, and cities. The overall crime rate in Shaftesbury in 2020 was 47 crimes per 1,000 people. This compares favourably to Dorset's overall crime rate, coming in 29% lower than the Dorset rate of 60 per 1,000 residents. For England, Wales, and Northern Ireland as a whole, Shaftesbury is the 349th safest small town, and the 3,417th most dangerous location out of all towns, cities, and villages.

In May 2020, Shaftesbury was the worst small town in Dorset for burglary, with 5 crimes reported and a crime rate of 0.56 per 1,000 inhabitants. December 2020 was also a bad month for Shaftesbury residents, when it was Dorset's most dangerous small town for possession of weapons, recording 1 crime at a rate of 0.11 per 1,000 residents. Shaftesbury recorded 5 reports of public order during November 2020, making its crime rate of 0.56 the worst small town for public order in Dorset that month.

The most common crimes in Shaftesbury are violence and sexual offences, with 194 offences during 2020, giving a crime rate of 22. This is 2.1% higher than 2019's figure of 190 offences and a difference of 0.45 from 2019's crime rate of 21. Shaftesbury's least common crimes are possession of weapons, with 1 offence recorded in 2020.

Compare Shaftesbury to other towns and cities

See how Shaftesbury shapes up compared to other locations around the country, including side-by-side comparisons of specific crime types, and separate charting of how Shaftesbury and your comparison town's crime rates stack up against one another.

Crime in Shaftesbury Compared To Dorset

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Summary of Crimes in Shaftesbury This Year

	Shaftesbury		Dorset
Crime	Count	Rate	Count	Rate	Rate Difference
Anti-Social Behaviour	248	27.76	25,481	32.94	19% safer
Burglary	32	3.58	2,916	3.77	5% safer
Criminal Damage and Arson	63	7.05	6,225	8.05	14% safer
Drugs	11	1.23	1,199	1.55	26% safer
Other Crime	6	0.67	535	0.69	3.0% safer
Other Theft	49	5.48	4,148	5.36	2.2% more dangerous
Possession of Weapons	1	0.11	308	0.40	264% safer
Public Order	23	2.57	3,158	4.08	59% safer
Robbery	1	0.11	360	0.47	327% safer
Shoplifting	14	1.57	2,626	3.39	116% safer
Theft From the Person	1	0.11	330	0.43	291% safer
Vehicle Crime	23	2.57	3,663	4.73	84% safer
Violence and Sexual Offences	194	21.71	20,041	25.90	19% safer

Shaftesbury Compared to Nearby Small Towns

Small Town	Total Crimes	Crime Rate	Rate Difference
Verwood	517	34.16	37% safer
Swanage	360	36.67	28% safer
Ferndown Town	737	39.05	20% safer
Sherborne	427	43.16	8% safer
Gillingham	524	43.61	7% safer
Shaftesbury	418	46.78	-
Blandford Forum	529	48.13	2.8% more dangerous
Dorchester	1,319	61.53	24% more dangerous
Portland	835	62.73	25% more dangerous
Bridport	590	70.79	34% more dangerous

Crime Over Time in Shaftesbury

View crime percentage over time for

Shaftesbury Crime Trends

	Crime Rate Per 1,000 Residents
Crime	2017	2018	2019	2020	Trend
Anti-Social Behaviour	27	25	24	28	Getting worse
Burglary	3.1	4.5	6	3.6	Safer
Criminal Damage and Arson	10	7	8	7	Safer
Drugs	1.3	1.6	1.3	1.2	Safer
Other Crime	1.0	1.1	0.22	0.67	Safer
Other Theft	9	11	8	5	Safer
Possession of Weapons	0.11	0.45	-	0.11	Safer
Public Order	1.6	3.1	2.7	2.6	Getting worse
Robbery (inc. mugging)	0.34	0.34	0.11	0.11	Safer
Shoplifting	5	6	3.8	1.6	Safer
Theft From the Person (inc. pickpocketing)	0.34	0.67	0.34	0.11	Safer
Vehicle Crime	3.5	3.5	3.7	2.6	Safer
Violence and Sexual Offences	16	18	21	22	Getting worse

Changes In Shaftesbury's Crime Rates Over Time

Comparing Shaftesbury to the UK's Major Cities

Small Town	Crime Rate	Rate Difference
Shaftesbury	46.78	-
Barnet	67.71	31% more dangerous
Coventry	77.41	40% more dangerous
Croydon	83.22	44% more dangerous
Sheffield	85.81	45% more dangerous
Bristol	86.21	46% more dangerous
Leicester	97.44	52% more dangerous
Birmingham	102.87	55% more dangerous
Liverpool	107.28	56% more dangerous
Bradford	133.02	65% more dangerous
Leeds	137.10	66% more dangerous

Crime in Shaftesbury's Neighbourhoods

Neighbourhood	Crime Count	Crime Rate	Danger Rank
Shaftesbury	418	47	First

Crime in Shaftesbury During Coronavirus Lockdowns

Looking at the months the UK was in lockdown in 2020 due to Covid-19, how did crime rates in Shaftesbury change compared to the same month in 2019? The biggest increase in lockdown crime came in September, when Shaftesbury saw a 400% increase in public order. Shaftesbury saw a large fall in burglary during June, when it fell by 80% compared to June in 2019.

Crime	Mar	Apr	May	Jun	Jul	Aug	Sep	Oct	Nov	Dec
Anti-Social Behaviour	+18%	+20%	-	-16%	+75%	-11%	-	+89%	+8%	+67%
Burglary	-75%	+100%	+25%	-80%	-80%	-75%	-33%	+100%	+100%	-78%
Criminal Damage and Arson	+67%	-50%	+75%	+40%	-42%	-30%	-50%	-14%	-	-57%
Drugs	-	-	-	-	+100%	-	-	-	-	-
Other Crime	-	+100%	-	-	-	-	-	-	-	-
Other Theft	-17%	-38%	-	-33%	-13%	-67%	-	-	-67%	-20%
Public Order	-	+200%	-67%	-	-67%	-	+400%	-	+67%	-
Shoplifting	+50%	-	-	-	-	-	+100%	-	-	-
Vehicle Crime	-	-	-	-	-	-	-	-	-	-57%
Violence and Sexual Offences	+33%	-57%	-31%	-27%	+53%	+6%	-33%	+8%	-19%	+46%

Frequently Asked Questions About Crime in Shaftesbury

What police force serves Shaftesbury?

Shaftesbury's local territorial police force is the Dorset Police.

How dangerous is Shaftesbury?

Shaftesbury is among the top 5 most dangerous small towns in Dorset.

What is Shaftesbury's most common crime?

The most common crimes in Shaftesbury are violence and sexual offences.

What is the least common crime in Shaftesbury?

Shaftesbury's least common crimes are possession of weapons.

Last updated: 07 May 2021

Crime and Safety in Shaftesbury, Dorset