The Office of National Statistics has shared data on crime in England and Wales in 2024, using data from the Crime Survey for England and Wales and police recorded crime. 

The data shows that crime against individuals has generally decreased over the last 10 years. However, there have been increases across some types of crime. 

The Crime Survey for England and Wales estimated 9.6 million incidents of headline crime - which includes theft, robbery, criminal damage, fraud, computer misuse, and violence. This was 14% higher than last year's survey because of increases in fraud and theft. 

  • fraud increased by 33% (to around 4.1 million incidents) 
  • theft increased by 13% (to around 2.9 million incidents)
  • computer misuse decreased by 23% (to around 757,000 incidents) because of a 29% fall in incidents of unauthorised access to personal information. 

Police recorded crime does not tend to be a good indicator of general trends, but it can give more insight. The data for 2024 showed that: 

  • the number of homicides decreased by 5% (to 535 offences), compared with 2023 (563 offences); this was the lowest in a decade
  • offences involving knives or sharp instruments increased by 2% (to 54,587 offences), compared with 2023 (53,413 offences) 
  • offences involving firearms decreased by 20% (to 5,252 offences), compared with 2023 (6,563 offences); this was mainly because of a 32% fall (to 1,882 offences) in imitation firearms, such as replica weapons and BB guns  
  • there was no change in robbery (81,135 offences), compared with 2023 (80,822 offences)
  • shoplifting offences rose by 20% (to 516,971 offences), compared with the previous year (429,873 offences); this is the highest figure since current police recording practices began in 2003.
     

The trends that come through this data are mostly really encouraging. But we know that fraud is a big worry for our members, and as crimes of this sort become more sophisticated it is essential people know what to look for online. It's also vital that people report crimes like phishing and scams, forward suspicious emails to report@phishing.gov.uk and forward suspicious text messages to 7726 so the issue can be addressed at its source.

The alarming growth in shoplifting is a priority for Neighbourhood Watch. We are increasing our resources to support retailers to take action and feel safe through our community safety charter, bringing organisations together to protect their staff and businesses.  

Sandra Bauer, Head of Policy, Partnerships and Projects at Neighbourhood Watch

Find out more about how to protect yourself from fraud.