Council areas

Council areas in the Essex Police area by crime rate

14 council areas ranked by published street-crime records per 1,000 residents counted in the Census 2021, September 2025 to August 2026, as each council area's page shows them.

Updated October 2026.

All council areas in England and Wales London boroughs

Ranked by published crime rate

This ranks rates, not safety. A residents-only rate reads high where many people visit and few live. Each record counts for the council area of its nearest postcode, so counts near a boundary are indicative, and police locations are approximate. How this ranking is built.

Rank of 14	Council area	Per 1,000	Records
1	Southend-on-Sea 180,718 residents	117.6	21,244
2	Harlow 93,242 residents	117.3	10,939
3	Thurrock 175,965 residents	104.1	18,321
4	Basildon 187,551 residents	101.4	19,010
5	Tendring 148,373 residents	100.7	14,945
6	Colchester 192,707 residents	98.5	18,981
7	Chelmsford 181,602 residents	87.6	15,911
8	Epping Forest 135,006 residents	77.2	10,417
9	Brentwood 76,991 residents	76.4	5,879
10	Braintree 155,330 residents	65.5	10,175
11	Uttlesford 91,353 residents	64.4	5,881
12	Castle Point 89,519 residents	63.1	5,652
13	Rochford 85,707 residents	53.8	4,615
14	Maldon 66,230 residents	53.3	3,527

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By police force area

Avon and Somerset Police area, Bedfordshire Police area, Cambridgeshire Constabulary area, Cheshire Constabulary area, Cleveland Police area, Cumbria Constabulary area, Derbyshire Constabulary area, Devon and Cornwall Police area, Dorset Police area, Durham Constabulary area, Dyfed-Powys Police area, Gwent Police area, Hampshire and Isle of Wight Constabulary area, Hertfordshire Constabulary area, Humberside Police area, Kent Police area, Lancashire Constabulary area, Leicestershire Police area, Lincolnshire Police area, Merseyside Police area, Norfolk Constabulary area, North Wales Police area, North Yorkshire Police area, Northamptonshire Police area, Northumbria Police area, Nottinghamshire Police area, South Wales Police area, South Yorkshire Police area, Staffordshire Police area, Suffolk Constabulary area, Surrey Police area, Sussex Police area, Thames Valley Police area, Warwickshire Police area, West Mercia Police area, West Midlands Police area, West Yorkshire Police area, Wiltshire Police area.

For one council area's months, categories and trend, open its page from the table or from crime by council area. For all 43 forces added up, see England and Wales crime statistics.