Forest of Dean Crime Rate March 2025 | Monthly Statistics

For an area of 89,753 residents, 513 crimes reported in March 2025 equate to 5.7 crimes per 1,000 people — 26.9% below the UK average of 7.8 per 1,000. This places Forest of Dean among the safer local authority districts in England and Wales. The crime profile reflects a rural district with mixed urban and semi-rural communities, where violence and sexual offences (162 cases) and anti-social behaviour (136 cases) dominate the monthly tally. Seasonal factors likely play a role in these patterns: as March transitions to spring, longer evenings may contribute to increased anti-social behaviour in public spaces, while the relatively low rate of vehicle crime (0.2 per 1,000) aligns with the area's sparse road networks and limited commuter traffic. The rate of violence and sexual offences is 34% below the UK average, consistent with the district’s lower population density and fewer concentrated nightlife areas. However, anti-social behaviour remains 20% above the UK average, possibly reflecting community-specific dynamics such as seasonal events or local land use patterns. The low prevalence of theft from the person (0.2 per 1,000) and shoplifting (0.3 per 1,000) further supports the notion of a relatively low-risk environment for personal property crimes, though this may also be influenced by the area’s limited retail and tourist infrastructure compared to urban centres.

March 2025 saw significant fluctuations in specific crime categories. Bicycle theft surged by 200%, rising from one incident to three, a shift that may reflect increased cycling activity as temperatures improved or changes in local transport patterns. Theft from the person doubled from zero to one case, though this single incident remains an outlier compared to the UK average of 0.2 per 1,000. Meanwhile, possession of weapons rose by 100%, from two to four cases, a spike that could be linked to seasonal variations in law enforcement activity or local events. Conversely, violence and sexual offences fell by 25.7%, a notable decline that may be attributed to the end of winter’s shorter evenings or targeted interventions. Drug-related offences dropped by 33.3%, from six to four cases, though this remains well below the UK average of 0.3 per 1,000. The crime mix also reveals stark contrasts with national trends: anti-social behaviour, at 1.5 per 1,000, is 20% above the UK average of 1.2 per 1,000, while public order offences are 45% below the national rate of 0.6 per 1,000. Residents might find the 56% reduction in shoplifting — down to 0.3 per 1,000 from the UK average of 0.7 per 1,000 — particularly reassuring, suggesting effective local measures or the area’s limited retail presence.

The crime rate in March 2025 (5.7 per 1,000) marked a 6.1% increase from February’s rate of 5.4 per 1,000, though it remains significantly below the UK average. On a daily basis, the district experienced approximately 17 crimes per day, a figure that contextualises the monthly total into manageable terms for residents. Over the course of March, one reported crime occurred for roughly every 175 residents — a monthly exposure rate that underscores the area’s relatively low crime burden. When scaled to the population of 89,753, this translates to a safer environment than the national average, with the most notable disparity in violent crime categories. The 34% gap between Forest of Dean’s violence and sexual offences rate (1.8 per 1,000) and the UK average (2.7 per 1,000) highlights a structural difference in risk profiles, possibly linked to the district’s lower population density and fewer concentrated urban areas. However, the 20% excess in anti-social behaviour compared to the UK average suggests that localised factors — such as community events or land use — may contribute to this category’s higher incidence. These comparisons illustrate that while Forest of Dean’s overall crime environment is safer than the UK average, specific challenges persist in certain categories, requiring targeted attention without overgeneralising the district’s overall safety profile.