Crime and Safety in Brightlingsea
Last updated: 07 Jun 2026
Brightlingsea is among the top 10 safest small towns in Essex, and is the 99th most dangerous overall out of Essex's 315 towns, villages, and cities. The overall crime rate in Brightlingsea in 2026 is 47 crimes per 1,000 people. This compares favourably to Essex's overall crime rate, coming in 32% lower than the Essex rate of 69 per 1,000 daytime population. For England, Wales, and Northern Ireland as a whole, Brightlingsea is the 283rd safest small town, and the 3,557th most dangerous location out of all towns, cities, and villages.
In February 2026, Brightlingsea was the worst small town in Essex for other theft, with 5 crimes reported and a crime rate of 0.55 per 1,000 daytime population. October 2025 was also a bad month for Brightlingsea residents, when it was Essex's most dangerous small town for public order, recording 8 crimes at a rate of 0.88 per 1,000 daytime population.
The most common crimes in Brightlingsea are violence and sexual offences, with 243 offences during 2026, giving a crime rate of 27. This is 8% higher than 2025's figure of 226 offences and a difference of 1.87 from 2025's crime rate of 25. Brightlingsea's least common crime is bicycle theft, with 0 offences recorded in 2026.
Brightlingsea 2026 Crime Scorecard
Top 10 Safest
Small Towns, Essex
24% lower, regional crime rate
East of England
35% lower, national crime rate
England, Wales & NI
Local Crime in Context
As of April 2026, the crime rate in Brightlingsea is 24% lower than the East of England and 35% lower than the England, Wales & Northern Ireland overall figure.
Brightlingsea Crime Rate Over Time
| Brightlingsea | |
| East of England | |
| England, Wales & NI |
Brightlingsea Crime Map
Incidents mapped in Brightlingsea represent the time frame between January 2016 and April 2026. Each point on the map represents an area where crimes have been recorded locally.
Use Crime Map
Hover over a point to see a breakdown of crime types recorded at that location. You can also filter by individual crime types, or use a combinations of offences to visualise the data you need.
See How Brightlingsea Compares
You can compare Brightlingsea's crime statistics against any other town, village, or city from across the country. Search for a location's name below to see how they stack up.
Introduction to Brightlingsea's crime statistics
This crime profile provides a detailed view of crime and safety around Brightlingsea up to April 2026, the most recent data release available. The crime figures and statistics have been calculated across each of Brightlingsea's 241 postcodes using three area sizes for comparison:
- Within a Five-Minute Walk
- Within a Ten-Minute Walk
- Within a Fifteen-Minute Walk
Individual crime risk scores and index figures are for the 12-month period ending April 2026 unless otherwise stated.
CrimeRate Insights
Looking into a specific address in Brightlingsea? CrimeRate Insights reports convert raw numbers into practical insight for any location, from single addresses and postcodes, up to major towns and cities.
Crime rates don’t happen by themselves; they follow people and patterns. Where crowds gather - near pubs and late-night venues, around the station, by supermarkets and forecourts - incidents naturally concentrate.
That doesn’t mean an area is "bad"; it usually means footfall is higher.
Your report explores these factors in a calm, non-judgemental way, putting the numbers in context and helping you spot what’s typical for places like this.
Crime Risk Scores
Brightlingsea • 12 Months Ending April 2026
The typical five-minute walk within Brightlingsea has a crime risk score of 491. This is based on analysis of 241 nearby areas within Brightlingsea, with "most" referring to roughly two thirds of the nearby locations.
Crime risk scores are on a scale of 1 to 1,000 and consider the severity of the crimes involved, as determined by sentencing guidelines. A score of 1 represents the lowest risk, and 1,000 the highest risk. This approach ensures that - unlike overall crime rate figures - bicycle theft is not given the same importance in Brightlingsea's risk scores as, for example, robbery, or violence & sexual offences.
Within a five-minute walk of the typical location in Brightlingsea, crime risk scores are typically around 491, while in Essex they are average 496.
Areas within a ten-minute walk typically see crime risk scores of 538 (502 for Essex), and scores within a fifteen-minute walk are most often around 579 (Essex 509).
Trends in Crime Risk
Brightlingsea
Calculated via Seasonal and Trend decomposition using Loess, the Seasonality Adjusted line represents the original data with seasonality subtracted, and the Trend line has been plotted unadjusted. Overall trend direction has been identified using the Mann-Kendall trend test, and rate calculated from the slope of the best-fit line identified from linear regression.
The 10-year trend indicates a decrease of 2.1% in Brightlingsea's crime risk score. This is potentially a strong signal of how the crime risk is evolving. Cross-referencing with major cultural events and Covid's impact during this time is advised.
The five-year trend may be static; no significant trend was identified in Brightlingsea's crime risk scores during this timeframe.
Over the last year, Brightlingsea's crime risk score has shown an upward trend of approximately 9%, indicating that the risk profile is going up. This is an extremely short time period for crime trend analysis, and caution should be exercised when interpreting this figure.
Crime Rates and Indexes
Brightlingsea
The CrimeRate Index shows how crime rates compare against the national average.
1.0 equals the average
2.0 is double
3.0 triple
0.5 is half and
0.25 a quarter.
Highest Crime Rates
Brightlingsea • 12 Months Ending April 2026
Excluding other crime and other theft because their geographic location is often not relevant, anti-social behaviour as its definition is too wide, and bicycle theft for its specificity.
Possession of Weapons offences have a crime rate of 0.66 reports per 1,000 people in Brightlingsea, which is 2.20 times the national average. This figure is calculated from 6 crime reports logged by Essex Police during the 12-month period ending April 2026.
For the same period, Essex Police recorded 3 reports of Robbery in Brightlingsea, resulting in a crime rate of 0.33 reports per 1,000, and a CrimeRate Index of 1.10.
The crime rate for Violence and Sexual Offences is 0.88 times the national average at 27 reports per 1,000. This is from 243 crime reports reported to Essex Police.
Most Significant 3-Year Increases in Crime Types
Brightlingsea
Excluding other crime and other theft, anti-social behaviour, and bicycle theft, and calculated with the same STL method described in Trends in Crime Risk, using CrimeRate Index figures to identify crime types that are trending above or below the national average, and the analysis timeframe limited to the last three years.
Drugs offences are trending upwards, and have a CrimeRate Index of - for the month of April 2026.
Three years ago, the monthly Drugs CrimeRate Index was 0.52 times the national average, and the current trend indicates a near-complete decrease over this timeframe.
Violence and Sexual Offences are trending upwards, and have a CrimeRate Index of 1.03 for the month of April 2026.
Three years ago, the monthly Violence and Sexual Offences CrimeRate Index was 0.83 times the national average, and the current trend indicates an increase of 24% over this timeframe.
Burglary offences are trending upwards, and have a CrimeRate Index of 0.46 for the month of April 2026.
Three years ago, the monthly Burglary CrimeRate Index was 0.37 times the national average, and the current trend indicates an increase of 24% over this timeframe.
Most Significant 3-Year Decreases in Crime Types
Brightlingsea
Calculated with the same methodology as the largest increases section above.
Criminal Damage and Arson offences are trending downwards, and have a CrimeRate Index of - for the month of April 2026.
Three years ago, the monthly Criminal Damage and Arson CrimeRate Index was 0.52 times the national average, and the current trend indicates a near-complete decrease over this timeframe.
Public Order offences are trending downwards, though the CrimeRate Index three years ago is too low to measure, and the trend should be reviewed with caution.
Crime Type Breakdown & Heat Map
Brightlingsea • 12 Months Ending April 2026
Size and colour reflect the CrimeRate Index figures for each type of crime.
Brightlingsea | Essex | East of England | |||||||
|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| Crime Type | Count | Rate | Index | Count | Rate | Index | Count | Rate | Index |
| Anti-Social Behaviour | 35 | 3.85 | 0.30 | 15,826 | 7.63 | 0.54 | 74,182 | 10.23 | 0.72 |
| Bicycle Theft | - | - | - | 1,211 | 0.59 | 0.81 | 5,325 | 0.72 | 0.99 |
| Burglary | 9 | 0.99 | 0.54 | 5,328 | 2.58 | 0.82 | 17,593 | 2.42 | 0.77 |
| Criminal Damage and Arson | 39 | 4.29 | 0.75 | 12,427 | 5.98 | 0.95 | 40,107 | 5.51 | 0.88 |
| Drugs | 15 | 1.65 | 0.71 | 6,807 | 3.27 | 1.06 | 18,935 | 2.59 | 0.84 |
| Other Crime | 5 | 0.55 | 1.20 | 3,330 | 1.61 | 0.87 | 12,241 | 1.70 | 0.92 |
| Other Theft | 36 | 3.96 | 0.70 | 10,377 | 4.98 | 0.88 | 34,703 | 4.78 | 0.84 |
| Possession of Weapons | 6 | 0.66 | 2.20 | 1,752 | 0.84 | 0.99 | 5,931 | 0.83 | 0.98 |
| Public Order | 32 | 3.52 | 0.65 | 10,675 | 5.12 | 0.88 | 32,088 | 4.42 | 0.76 |
| Robbery | 3 | 0.33 | 1.10 | 1,433 | 0.69 | 0.58 | 4,492 | 0.61 | 0.52 |
| Shoplifting | 20 | 2.20 | 0.47 | 13,424 | 6.46 | 0.91 | 43,068 | 5.94 | 0.83 |
| Theft From the Person | 3 | 0.33 | 0.85 | 997 | 0.49 | 0.32 | 3,654 | 0.52 | 0.34 |
| Vehicle Crime | 16 | 1.76 | 0.62 | 10,314 | 4.97 | 1.16 | 27,821 | 3.84 | 0.89 |
| Violence and Sexual Offences | 243 | 26.61 | 0.88 | 65,641 | 31.56 | 1.04 | 200,684 | 27.65 | 0.91 |
Download | |||||||||
Total Crime by Year
Brightlingsea | Essex | East of England | |||||||
|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| Year | Count | Rate | Index | Count | Rate | Index | Count | Rate | Index |
| 2026 | 427 | 46.85 | 0.78 | 143,716 | 69.14 | 0.96 | 446,642 | 61.53 | 0.85 |
| 2025 | 396 | 43.49 | 0.75 | 139,780 | 67.68 | 0.91 | 441,082 | 61.31 | 0.83 |
| 2024 | 404 | 44.39 | 0.73 | 150,055 | 73.45 | 0.97 | 443,460 | 62.34 | 0.83 |
| 2023 | 466 | 51.44 | 0.80 | 162,636 | 80.64 | 1.02 | 474,715 | 67.51 | 0.85 |
| 2022 | 390 | 43.34 | 0.67 | 166,739 | 83.60 | 1.09 | 471,617 | 67.78 | 0.88 |
| 2021 | 426 | 48.25 | 0.85 | 150,121 | 75.78 | 1.11 | 437,869 | 63.51 | 0.93 |
| 2020 | 407 | 46.51 | 0.74 | 162,259 | 82.34 | 1.11 | 465,376 | 67.88 | 0.92 |
| 2019 | 423 | 48.80 | 0.75 | 161,365 | 82.25 | 1.08 | 482,539 | 70.87 | 0.93 |
| 2018 | 501 | 58.04 | 0.93 | 137,578 | 70.55 | 0.99 | 439,882 | 64.91 | 0.91 |
| 2017 | 414 | 48.32 | 0.89 | 122,860 | 63.43 | 0.99 | 396,747 | 58.76 | 0.92 |
| 2016 | 141 | 16.54 | 1.02 | 37,128 | 19.19 | 1.01 | 116,493 | 17.30 | 0.91 |
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Brightlingsea Compared to Nearby Small Towns
12 Months Ending Apr 2026
| Small Town | Total Crimes | Crime Rate | Rate Difference |
|---|---|---|---|
| Stanway | 974 | 70.06 | 50% more dangerous |
| Epping | 992 | 71.53 | 53% more dangerous |
| South Ockendon | 1,637 | 73.04 | 56% more dangerous |
| Rochford | 848 | 66.24 | 41% more dangerous |
| Chigwell | 883 | 57.64 | 23% more dangerous |
| Maldon | 1,058 | 61.09 | 30% more dangerous |
| Halstead | 835 | 57.76 | 23% more dangerous |
| Heybridge | 420 | 49.71 | 6% more dangerous |
| Wivenhoe | 357 | 46.73 | 0.26% safer |
| Buckhurst Hill | 636 | 51.01 | 9% more dangerous |
| Brightlingsea | 427 | 46.85 | - |
| Frinton and Walton | 1,138 | 53.15 | 13% more dangerous |
| Burnham-on-Crouch | 505 | 49.49 | 6% more dangerous |
| Great Baddow | 777 | 49.14 | 4.9% more dangerous |
| Great Dunmow | 651 | 48.88 | 4.3% more dangerous |
| Springfield | 286 | 34.15 | 27% safer |
| Leigh-on-Sea | 1,003 | 42.08 | 10% safer |
| South Woodham Ferrers | 667 | 40.35 | 14% safer |
| Tiptree | 385 | 37.19 | 21% safer |
| Saffron Walden | 700 | 36.02 | 23% safer |
| Hawkwell | 370 | 29.45 | 37% safer |
Comparing Brightlingsea to the UK's Major Cities
12 Months Ending Apr 2026
| City Name | Crime Rate | Rate Difference |
|---|---|---|
| Brightlingsea | 46.85 | - |
| Cardiff | 79.55 | 70% more dangerous |
| Newcastle upon Tyne | 82.69 | 76% more dangerous |
| Sheffield | 84.09 | 79% more dangerous |
| Leicester | 97.87 | 109% more dangerous |
| Bristol | 104.64 | 123% more dangerous |
| Birmingham | 105.05 | 124% more dangerous |
| Liverpool | 106.48 | 127% more dangerous |
| Leeds | 107.10 | 129% more dangerous |
| Nottingham | 107.74 | 130% more dangerous |
| Westminster | 125.00 | 167% more dangerous |
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Offences In and Around Brightlingsea's Parks & Leisure Spaces
Limited to spaces in Brightlingsea that are named and have had crimes recorded within their boundaries in the 12 months to Apr 2026.
| Name | ASB | Drugs | Public Order | Robbery | VSO | All Others |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| Pawsons Play Area | - | - | - | - | 1 | 2 |
| Bayard Recreation Ground | - | - | - | - | 9 | 0 |
| Western Promenade | 7 | 1 | 1 | - | 17 | 13 |
| Brightlingsea Lido | 2 | - | - | - | 1 | 3 |
| Springmead Garden | 1 | 1 | - | - | - | 2 |
Recent Crimes in Brightlingsea
The 20 most recent crime reports in Brightlingsea.
| Date | Crime Type | Location | Outcome |
|---|---|---|---|
| April 2026 | Anti-social behaviour | On or near Lodge Road | |
| April 2026 | Anti-social behaviour | On or near Supermarket | |
| April 2026 | Anti-social behaviour | On or near Colne Road | |
| April 2026 | Burglary | On or near Campernell Close | |
| April 2026 | Other crime | On or near Marsh Way | |
| April 2026 | Violence and sexual offences | On or near Campernell Close | |
| April 2026 | Violence and sexual offences | On or near North Road | |
| April 2026 | Violence and sexual offences | On or near Campernell Close | |
| April 2026 | Violence and sexual offences | On or near Recreation Way | |
| April 2026 | Violence and sexual offences | On or near Campernell Close | |
| April 2026 | Violence and sexual offences | On or near North Road | |
| April 2026 | Violence and sexual offences | On or near Church Road | |
| April 2026 | Violence and sexual offences | On or near Church Road | |
| April 2026 | Violence and sexual offences | On or near Regent Close | |
| April 2026 | Violence and sexual offences | On or near Ophir Road | |
| April 2026 | Violence and sexual offences | On or near Ophir Road | |
| April 2026 | Violence and sexual offences | On or near Marsh Way | |
| April 2026 | Violence and sexual offences | On or near Lower Green Gardens | |
| April 2026 | Violence and sexual offences | On or near Church Road | |
| April 2026 | Violence and sexual offences | On or near Church Road |
Methodology & Data Sources
Brightlingsea Crime Report
Data Sources & Processing
Every month, CrimeRate processes crime reports from data.police.uk, the UK's official provider of open crime report data. Each crime report includes anonymised coordinates, most often "snapped" to the middle of the nearest street, or to the nearest major landmark. The reports also include the month and year the crime was reported, as well as the type of crime.
Data releases on data.police.uk happen once a month, with a two-month delay. This means that, for example, crimes reported in Brightlingsea during July 2026 will typically become available in September 2026. The latest release is for Apr 2026 and was released in Jun 2026. To provide current and historical crime statistics, CrimeRate processed 61,669,232 crime reports for the latest release.
Brightlingsea Data Points
For Brightlingsea, CrimeRate uses the geographic boundaries provided by The Office for National Statistics in the December 2023 release of their Parishes and Non Civil Parished Areas dataset, using the PARNCP23CD column value E04004092.
Due to the 2021 Census being conducted during a UK-wide Coronavirus lockdown, the daytime population figures released so far cannot be relied on for purposes such as comparing crime rates. Instead, CrimeRate uses Brightlingsea's daytime - or "workday" - population of 6,661 from the ONS 2011 Census for calculations throughout the site.
All geographic boundaries use the full resolution - extent of the realm versions where provided to avoid missing crime reports near coastlines and rivers - the banks of the Thames in particular - that would otherwise not be included when using the clipped to the coastline datasets.
Calculating Crime Rates
CrimeRate locates the UK region, county, and town/city/village locality for each crime report, and calculates the crime rate by taking the sum of all crime reports, dividing it by the locality's daytime / "workday" population, and multiplying the result by 1,000 to get the crime rate per 1,000.
Crime Risk Score Calculations
CrimeRate calculates crime counts for local, nearby, and wider areas for every postcode in England, Wales, and Northern Ireland. The postcodes locations are deduplicated by a process that ensures distinct points are approximately 50 metres apart. This process removes the bias that would otherwise come from counting the same crimes several times in heavily populated areas.
Using a custom algorithm developed in-house, CrimeRate applies a crime severity weighting to each area's crime counts, based on the type of crime reported. This increases or decreases the crime count, or zeroes it out entirely, depending on the crime type. A separate crime severity rate is then calculated, standardised, and scaled to fit the crime risk score range of 1 to 1,000, with 1 being the lowest score, and 1,000 the highest.
Crime risk scores undergo further analysis per town, city, and village plus other areas including police forces and neighbourhoods. CrimeRate uses percentiles to work out the most common range of crime risk scores in each locality. This includes identifying the high and low bounds where approximately 68% of scores fall, and finding the median (50th percentile) for easy reference.
The crime types with a weight of zero are: Anti-Social Behaviour; Bicycle Theft; Other Crime; Other Theft; and Shoplifting. The highest weights to are assigned to Violence & Sexual Offences, and the lowest to Vehicle Crime.
Frequently Asked Questions
Crime in Brightlingsea