Breckland Crime Rate January 2026 | Monthly Statistics

Breckland's crime profile in January 2026 reveals a distinct balance between violent and property crimes, with violence and sexual offences accounting for nearly half of all reported incidents. At 4.3 per 1,000 residents, Breckland's crime rate is 36.8% below the UK average of 6.8 per 1,000, suggesting a relatively safer environment compared to the national picture. Violence and sexual offences dominate the crime mix at 46.4% of total incidents, with a rate of 2.0 per 1,000 — 20% below the UK average of 2.5 per 1,000. This could reflect local policing strategies or community dynamics that mitigate violent crime, though seasonal factors such as post-holiday periods and shorter daylight hours may influence patterns. Anti-social behaviour (8.9%) and criminal damage (7.3%) follow as the next most common categories, both significantly below UK averages. Breckland's rates for shoplifting and public order offences are 47% and 29% below national figures, respectively, linked to lower retail footfall in January and effective local enforcement. The data also highlights a 43% above-average rate for possession of weapons, a category that warrants further scrutiny in the context of Breckland's broader crime profile. This mix of crime types, while skewed towards violent incidents, indicates a combination of local conditions and national trends that shape Breckland's unique profile.

January 2026 saw significant fluctuations in specific crime categories, with other theft increasing by 34.4% (32 → 43) and drugs-related incidents rising by 14.8% (27 → 31). These increases may reflect heightened economic pressures or changes in illicit activity patterns during the post-holiday period. Conversely, robbery incidents fell sharply by 66.7% (3 → 1), marking one of the most substantial declines in the dataset — a drop that could be attributed to targeted policing or seasonal factors reducing opportunities for such crimes. Bicycle theft also decreased by 33.3% (3 → 2), linked to colder weather reducing outdoor activity. The crime mix shifted further with possession of weapons rising by 14.3% (14 → 16), a category that is 43% above the UK average of 0.1 per 1,000. This anomaly contrasts with Breckland's overall lower rates for most crime types, suggesting a need for focused attention on weapon-related incidents. The area's rate for violence and sexual offences (2.0 per 1,000) remains 20% below the UK average, illustrating a consistent trend in this category despite the rise in weapons possession. These variations highlight the nuanced nature of Breckland's crime picture, where some categories align with national trends while others deviate significantly.

Breckland's crime rate in January 2026 (4.3 per 1,000) represents a 5.7% decline from the previous month's rate of 4.6 per 1,000, indicating a slight downward trajectory. On a daily basis, the area recorded approximately 20 crimes per day over the 31-day period, a figure that provides residents with a tangible sense of local crime frequency. When scaled to population, the monthly exposure rate of 1 crime per 233 residents offers context for how often residents might encounter crime in their daily lives. This rate is lower than the UK average, which stands at 6.8 per 1,000, and suggests that Breckland's population experiences a proportionally smaller share of reported crimes compared to the national average. The decline from the previous month may be influenced by seasonal factors, such as the post-holiday period reducing opportunities for retail-related crimes like shoplifting. However, the persistence of violence and sexual offences at 46.4% of total crimes indicates that this category remains a focal point for local authorities. The daily crime figure of 20 incidents per day, while lower than the UK average, still necessitates community engagement and policing strategies to maintain this trend. The population-scaled perspective further underscores that Breckland's residents face a crime environment that, while not entirely risk-free, is comparatively safer than the national context.