Reading Crime Statistics

How safe is Reading?

Reading is a large town in the county of Berkshire, in the Thames Valley region of England. Located 75 miles east of Bristol, 25 miles south of Oxford, and 42 miles west of London, it is an important commercial centre in Southern England.

When you include its suburbs, Reading has a population of approximately 235,000, making it the largest settlement in the UK without city status. Reading borough itself has a population of approximately 160,000. It is ethnically diverse, with 9.1% of its inhabitants identifying as South Asian, 6.7% identifying as black, 3.9% as mixed race and 4.5% as Chinese. There is also a large Polish community in Reading.

But how safe is Reading?

Between June 2016 and May 2017, there were 16,337 crimes committed in Reading borough. Antisocial behaviour was the most commonly seen crime, with 3,481 offences reported – just over 21% of total crime in Reading borough. Violent crime was the second-most-recorded offence, with 3,142 crimes reported – about 19% of all crime.

The third most common crime in Reading borough is other theft, i.e., not theft from a person, car theft or bike theft. There were 1,592 reported incidents of other theft within this time period – just under 10% of all crime. Criminal damage and arson was next, with 1,541 crimes (9.5%) reported. This was followed by shoplifting at 1,521 crimes (9%), and then vehicle crime, with 1,233 crimes (7.5%). The seventh most frequent crime in Reading borough was burglary, with 1,126 reported crimes (7%).