Possession of Weapons Stats and Figures

Last updated: 07 Jun 2026

During 2026, England & Wales's police forces received 56,620 crime reports about possession of weapons. This is an increase of 8% from 2025's figure of 52,515 reports of possession of weapons, giving an overall crime rate of 0.85 per 1,000 people in 2026 and a rate of 0.80 per 1,000 people for 2025.

The most dangerous cities for possession of weapons are Birmingham, Peterborough, and Southampton, with crime rates of 2.68, 2.09, and 2.07 per 1,000 daytime population respectively. The most dangerous region for possession of weapons is West Midlands, which recorded a possession of weapons rate of 2.03 offences per 1,000 people in 2026. The second most dangerous area for possession of weapons is West Sussex, with a crime rate of 1.40, followed by Nottinghamshire in third, with a possession of weapons rate of 1.27 per 1,000 daytime population.

The safest area in England and Wales for possession of weapons is City of London, which had a crime rate of 0.10 in 2026. Next safest is Richmond upon Thames, followed by Harrow in third place, with crime rates per 1,000 daytime population of 0.20 and 0.32 respectively.

Top Towns & Cities for Possession of Weapons

Highest Possession of Weapons Rates

Position	Name	Crime Rate
1	Birmingham	2.68
2	Peterborough	2.09
3	Southampton	2.07
4	Nottingham	1.97
5	Northampton	1.90
6	Portsmouth	1.76
7	Coventry	1.73
8	Wolverhampton	1.68
9	Middlesbrough	1.67
10	Stoke-on-Trent	1.66
11	Derby	1.51
12	Plymouth	1.50
13	Southend-on-Sea	1.37
14	Brighton and Hove	1.35
15	Norwich	1.32
16	Luton	1.29
17	Sheffield	1.27
18	Kingston upon Hull	1.22
19	Leeds	1.19
20	Liverpool	1.17
21	Leicester	1.12
22	Lewisham	1.07
23	Swansea	1.05
24	Bradford	1.02
25	Cardiff	0.99
26	Newcastle upon Tyne	0.98
27	Hackney	0.85
28	Belfast City	0.83
29	Swindon	0.83
30	Lambeth	0.80
31	Haringey	0.80
32	Southwark	0.73
33	Newham	0.71
34	Enfield	0.70
35	Bristol	0.69
36	Croydon	0.69
37	Brent	0.68
38	Kensington and Chelsea	0.68
39	Islington	0.66
40	Greenwich	0.64
41	Westminster	0.61
42	Barking and Dagenham	0.60
43	Ealing	0.59
44	Havering	0.59
45	Hammersmith and Fulham	0.58
46	Waltham Forest	0.58
47	Hounslow	0.55
48	Reading	0.54
49	Tower Hamlets	0.50
50	Bromley	0.48
51	Wandsworth	0.48
52	Kingston upon Thames	0.48
53	Redbridge	0.47
54	Bournemouth	0.47
55	Bexley	0.46
56	Hillingdon	0.45
57	Merton	0.44
58	Sutton	0.43
59	Barnet	0.43
60	Camden	0.42
61	Milton Keynes	0.39
62	Harrow	0.32
63	Richmond upon Thames	0.20
64	City of London	0.10

Lowest Possession of Weapons Rates

Position	Name	Crime Rate
1	City of London	0.10
2	Richmond upon Thames	0.20
3	Harrow	0.32
4	Milton Keynes	0.39
5	Camden	0.42
6	Barnet	0.43
7	Sutton	0.43
8	Merton	0.44
9	Hillingdon	0.45
10	Bexley	0.46
11	Bournemouth	0.47
12	Redbridge	0.47
13	Kingston upon Thames	0.48
14	Bromley	0.48
15	Wandsworth	0.48
16	Tower Hamlets	0.50
17	Reading	0.54
18	Hounslow	0.55
19	Waltham Forest	0.58
20	Hammersmith and Fulham	0.58
21	Ealing	0.59
22	Havering	0.59
23	Barking and Dagenham	0.60
24	Westminster	0.61
25	Greenwich	0.64
26	Islington	0.66
27	Brent	0.68
28	Kensington and Chelsea	0.68
29	Croydon	0.69
30	Bristol	0.69
31	Enfield	0.70
32	Newham	0.71
33	Southwark	0.73
34	Lambeth	0.80
35	Haringey	0.80
36	Belfast City	0.83
37	Swindon	0.83
38	Hackney	0.85
39	Newcastle upon Tyne	0.98
40	Cardiff	0.99
41	Bradford	1.02
42	Swansea	1.05
43	Lewisham	1.07
44	Leicester	1.12
45	Liverpool	1.17
46	Leeds	1.19
47	Kingston upon Hull	1.22
48	Sheffield	1.27
49	Luton	1.29
50	Norwich	1.32
51	Brighton and Hove	1.35
52	Southend-on-Sea	1.37
53	Plymouth	1.50
54	Derby	1.51
55	Stoke-on-Trent	1.66
56	Middlesbrough	1.67
57	Wolverhampton	1.68
58	Coventry	1.73
59	Portsmouth	1.76
60	Northampton	1.90
61	Nottingham	1.97
62	Southampton	2.07
63	Peterborough	2.09
64	Birmingham	2.68

Top Counties and Councils for Possession of Weapons

Highest Possession of Weapons Rates

Position	Name	Crime Rate
1	West Midlands	2.03
2	West Sussex	1.40
3	Nottinghamshire	1.27
4	South Yorkshire	1.17
5	East Sussex	1.15
6	Northamptonshire	1.14
7	Hampshire	1.12
8	Cambridgeshire	1.06
9	Lancashire	1.01
10	Isle of Wight	0.99

Lowest Possession of Weapons Rates

Position	Name	Crime Rate
1	Greater Manchester	-
2	City and County of the City of London	0.10
3	Fermanagh	0.22
4	Gwent	0.30
5	Rutland	0.33
6	Tyrone	0.36
7	Oxfordshire	0.37
8	Dorset	0.38
9	Down	0.39
10	Berkshire	0.39