Leeds is a popular area in Yorkshire, but in the last few years, there have been mixed opinions on the city’s safety. So, is Leeds a safe place to live? We’ll be discussing this and more such as which areas in Leeds are viewed as crime hotspots.
Is Leeds A Safe Place To Live?
Leeds is ranked as West Yorkshire’s most dangerous city. It’s also among the top 20 most dangerous locations out of all villages, cities, and towns in West Yorkshire.
A survey by Confused.com ranked Leeds as the 14th most secure postcode in the UK. This survey took into account different factors such as crimes per 1,000 people, the amount of CCTV cameras, how many police officers worked in the area, and resident safety.
What Are The Crime Rates In Leeds?
So, what is crime in Leeds really like? Crimerate reported that in 2023, Leeds had an overall crime rate of 151 crimes reported per 1,000 people. This was 17% higher than West Yorkshire’s own crime rate of 129 crimes.
Many crimes affect Leeds’s safety, but its most common one is violent crimes. Violent crimes make up more than 37.5% of all crimes committed in Leeds. During 2023, violent crimes had decreased by 3% and were committed 40,224 times.
To get a better understanding of what crimes take place in Leeds the most, we created a table using statistics from Plumplot.
Type Of Crime |
Share Of Al Crimes |
Crime Volume |
Violent Crime |
37.5% |
43.3K |
Public Order Crimes |
9.4% |
10.9K |
Shoplifting |
9.1% |
10.6K |
Anti-Social Behaviour |
7.9% |
9.1K |
Criminal Damage & Arson |
7.4% |
8.6K |
Other Theft Crime |
7% |
8.1K |
Vehicle Crime |
6.3% |
7.2K |
Burglary |
5.6% |
6.5K |
Drug Crimes |
2.8% |
3.3K |
Other Crime |
2.6% |
3K |
Theft From The Person |
1.3% |
1.5K |
Robbery |
1.3% |
1.5K |
Bicycle Theft |
1% |
1.1K |
Possession Of Weapons |
0.8% |
961 |
Does Leeds Have A High Crime Rate?
When compared to other cities, Leeds does have a quite high crime rate. Crimerate revealed that Leeds’s crime rate was higher than:
- Belfast City (67% safer than Leeds)
- Birmingham (9% safer than Leeds)
- Bristol (21% safer than Leeds)
- Camden (27% safer than Leeds)
- Liverpool (10% safer than Leeds)
- London (80% safer than Leeds)
- Sheffield (30% safer than Leeds)
- Tower Hamlets (34% safer than Leeds)
- Westminster (11% safer than Leeds)
What Is The Roughest Part Of Leeds?
As with any urban area, Leeds has neighbourhoods that see higher incidences of crime than others. Utilizing statistics from Crimerate, we’ve identified which wards in Leeds are considered the most dangerous.
Ward |
Crime Count |
Crime Rate |
Little London & Woodhouse |
13,342 |
136 |
Hunslet & Riverside |
7,877 |
126 |
Gipton & Harehills |
6,031 |
220 |
Beeston & Holbeck |
5,653 |
151 |
Armley |
5,321 |
211 |
Killingbeck & Seacroft |
5,217 |
231 |
Burmantofts & Richmond Hill |
5,112 |
164 |
Middleton Park |
4,198 |
224 |
Bramley & Stanningley |
3,570 |
209 |
Farnley & Wortley |
3,455 |
167 |
Which Areas Have The Highest Levels Of Crime In Leeds?
The statistics indicate that Little London and Woodhouse had the highest number of crimes committed. However, Bramley and Stanningley had the highest crime rate in Leeds.
Principles Of Crime Prevention From The West Yorkshire Police
It is very important that we take precautionary measures to ensure that we as individuals and as a community stay safe and help prevent criminal activity. Towards this aim of decreasing crime within the county of Leeds, the West Yorkshire Police have created a list of principles.
These principles can assist you in reducing the opportunity for crime to occur at your home, your place of work, your business or when you are out and about in the city. See the list below of the most important principles you should consider.
Target Removal
Make sure any valuables are out of sight in your home, at your business or on your person. This will help to deter criminals therefore helping to prevent the loss of your property and the likelydhood of damages
Reducing the Means
Reduce how easy it is for someone to steal from you by not leaving items unattended. If you are out ensure you keep your belongings close to your person.
Access Control
Control access to your home, business or vehicle by locking all doors and windows.
Surveillance
Improve the surveillance around your home and/or business. Consider install alarms or CCTV and when out make sure you watch your belongings at all times.
Conclusion
Every city has its safer parts and areas that are more dangerous, and Leeds is no exception, however in comparison to other English cities, it is a safer option. Understandably, businesses may want to protect themselves so that they or their staff are not the victims of crime. There are ways to reduce your likelihood of being targeted by criminals, and one such way is by hiring a security company. A security company can install CCTV cameras to monitor premises or provide security guards for a physical presence, deterring potential criminals. Security companies can also review your current security methods, making recommendations on how to make your business safer.
Huddersfield is another popular area in Yorkshire, check out our article to see how safe Huddersfield really is, or take a look at our other articles to see what the crime rate is like in the South of Yorkshire. Also, head over to our news page so that you can keep up to date with all the latest Yorkshire news.
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