Overview of Bolton crime rate
Essential tools against vehicle theft.
Bolton showcases a low crime rate, ranking 18th among 25 local areas, with 163 reported incidents in 2023 against a population of 295,963. This results in a crime rate of 0.55 per 1,000 residents, indicating a 7.84% rise from the previous year.
In Bolton, the most common crimes were Violence and sexual offences (54%), Public order (16.6%), and Other theft (7.4%), with the least frequent being Bicycle theft, Theft from the person, and Drugs, each accounting for less than 3%.
Among its 18 wards, Great Lever (2.8), Horwich and Blackrod (2.2), and Bromley Cross (1.1) experienced the highest crime rates, while Westhoughton South, Smithills, and Breightmet were notably safer, each with rates around 0.1.
Reviewing postcode districts within Bolton, BL7 (10.1), BL6 (5.0), and WN1 (1.0) recorded the highest crime rates, contrasted by BL4 (0.2), M26 (0.1), and WN2 (0.1) as the most secure areas.
In Bolton, there were no reported increases in crime rates for the specified period. However, significant decreases were observed across various crime types in 2020, including Anti-social behaviour, Burglary, Criminal damage and arson, Other crime, Other theft, Public order, and Vehicle crime. Additionally, Violence and sexual offences saw a notable reduction in 2020, with a decrease in Shoplifting also noted in 2023.
Bolton crime incidents by crime type
A total of 163 crime incidents were reported in 2023. Below is the breakdown by crime type.
- Violence and sexual offences – 88 (54.0)%
- Public order – 27 (16.6)%
- Other theft – 12 (7.4)%
- Criminal damage and arson – 10 (6.1)%
- Anti-social behaviour – 5 (3.1)%
- Vehicle crime – 2 (1.2)%
- Other crime – 4 (2.5)%
- Shoplifting – 2 (1.2)%
- Burglary – 3 (1.8)%
- Bicycle theft – 3 (1.8)%
- Theft from the person – 3 (1.8)%
- Drugs – 4 (2.5)%
How does Bolton compare against nearby areas ?
Bolton ranks 18th when compared against 25 nearby boroughs/local administrative districts.
List of nearby boroughs/local administrative districts from high crime rate to low (2023):
Heat map for all nearby areas Bolton is compared against
Crime rates in Bolton wards
There are 18 wards within Bolton. Great Lever, Horwich and Blackrod, Bromley Cross has highest crime rate (crime per 1000 residents). Below map shows 2023 crime rates broken down by crime types.
get-ward-map/bolton/
List of all 18 wards from high crime rate to low.
Analyze trends and crime types for Bolton wards
Crime rates in postcode districts under Bolton
There are 14 postcode districts/outcodes under or overlapping with Bolton. Highest crime rates in BL7, BL6, WN1 .
- BL7 – 10.1
- BL6 – 5.0
- WN1 – 1.0
- BL1 – 1.0
- M46 – 0.7
- BL5 – 0.4
- M38 – 0.3
- M28 – 0.3
- BL8 – 0.3
- BL2 – 0.2
- BL3 – 0.2
- BL4 – 0.2
- M26 – 0.1
- WN2 – 0.1
Postcode districts in Bolton
For postcode level details drill down the postcode districts or visit Postcode Search