Crime in South Hams
Recorded crime in South Hams is 0.4 times the England and Wales average. Over 5 years it has risen 40%. Most of the harm comes from violence and sexual offences (assaults, harassment, sexual offences). Police data to August 2026.
92,148 residents in 49 neighbourhoods.
- Safety in the UK
- 9/10Very low crime
- Safety in the world
- 8/10Low crime
- Living
- 4.7/10Fair
- 5-year change
- +40%more crimes
Crime over 5 years
Up 40% in 5 years Recorded crimes in South Hams, anti-social behaviour left out.
What is recorded
Crime severity: 0.4× the England and Wales average. 33 recorded crimes per 1,000 residents a year.
- Violence and sexual offences (assaults, harassment, sexual offences): 69% of the harm here
- Burglary: 13% of the harm here
- Other theft: 6% of the harm here
"Violence and sexual offences" is 69% of the harm here. It is a broad police category: most of these crimes are assaults without injury, harassment and threats, often indoors between people who know each other, and only a small part are sexual or serious violent offences. Police data does not say which, so each one is weighted at the England and Wales average for the category, which can overstate a quiet residential area.
Anti-social behaviour: 11 incidents per 1,000 residents a year, not scored. Not a crime, so it is not part of the Safety score.
Crime by type
Recorded crimes per 1,000 residents per year, most serious first, not counting anti-social behaviour.
| Type | Per 1,000 a year |
|---|---|
| Robbery | 0.1 |
| Burglary | 1.7 |
| Violence and sexual offences (assaults, harassment, sexual offences) | 14.6 |
| Drugs | 1.2 |
| Possession of weapons (knives and other weapons) | 0.3 |
| Other crime | 0.8 |
| Other theft | 3.9 |
| Theft from the person (pickpocketing, bag snatching) | 0.1 |
| Vehicle crime (cars stolen and broken into) | 1.5 |
| Criminal damage and arson (vandalism) | 4.5 |
| Public order | 2.4 |
| Bicycle theft | 0.2 |
| Shoplifting | 1.7 |
What crimes are recorded in South Hams
46.2 crimes per 1,000 residents were recorded in the South Devon and Dartmoor partnership area in 2025/26 (England and Wales: 83.2).
Crimes recorded by the police, April 2025 to March 2026. Source: Home Office, police recorded crime by community safety partnership. Figures for the South Devon and Dartmoor community safety partnership, which covers South Hams, Teignbridge and West Devon.
| Type | Crimes in 2025/26 | Per 1,000 residents | Change on 2024/25 |
|---|---|---|---|
| Cars stolen | 159 | 0.55 | Down 9% |
| Cars broken into | 166 | 0.57 | Down 11% |
| Vehicle tampering | 37 | 0.13 | Up 42% |
| Vandalism to homes | 287 | 0.99 | Down 3% |
| Vandalism to other buildings | 126 | 0.44 | Down 12% |
| Vandalism to vehicles | 291 | 1.0 | Down 37% |
| Arson | 69 | 0.24 | Up 35% |
| Burglary of homes | 250 | 0.86 | Down 5% |
| Burglary of businesses | 193 | 0.67 | Down 28% |
| Homicide (murder and manslaughter) | 1 | - | - |
| Carrying a knife or blade | 69 | 0.24 | Up 19% |
| Carrying other weapons (including guns) | 97 | 0.33 | Down 2% |
| Robbery of people | 44 | 0.15 | Up 26% |
| Robbery of businesses | 13 | 0.04 | - |
| Violence with injury | 1,607 | 5.5 | Down 4% |
| Violence without injury | 2,324 | 8.0 | About the same |
| Stalking and harassment | 2,363 | 8.2 | Up 32% |
| Sexual offences | 759 | 2.6 | Up 2% |
| Shoplifting | 882 | 3.0 | Up 14% |
| Bicycle theft | 45 | 0.16 | About the same |
| Theft from the person (pickpocketing, bag snatching) | 59 | 0.20 | Up 5% |
| Drug dealing | 95 | 0.33 | Down 54% |
| Drug possession | 200 | 0.69 | Down 23% |
Under 10 a year: no rate or change, the numbers are too small to compare. These are council-area figures: police.uk street-level data, used for the map and the Safety score, only has the broad categories, and no source publishes murders or stabbings by street.
Devon and Cornwall Police area: 862 offences involving a knife or sharp instrument in 2025/26 (876 the year before). This covers the whole police force area, not only South Hams.
Source: Home Office, police recorded knife crime by police force.
Police and Crime Commissioner: Alison Hernandez (Devon and Cornwall) →
How often crimes lead to a charge
In South Hams, 5% of crimes reported between September 2024 and August 2025 led to someone being charged or summonsed (England and Wales: 9%).
- Charged or summonsed
- Caution or other action
- Suspect found, not prosecuted
- No suspect identified
- Still open
Show as a table
| Type | Crimes | Charged or summonsed | Caution or other action | Suspect found, not prosecuted | No suspect identified | Still open |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| Violence and sexual offences (assaults, harassment, sexual offences) | 1,748 | 3% | 3% | 77% | 12% | 5% |
| Criminal damage and arson (vandalism) | 470 | 4% | 2% | 35% | 55% | 4% |
| Other theft | 367 | 1% | 2% | 34% | 58% | 5% |
| Public order | 248 | 3% | 3% | 62% | 27% | 4% |
| Shoplifting | 198 | 17% | 2% | 35% | 44% | 2% |
| Burglary | 163 | 13% | 2% | 20% | 63% | 2% |
| Drugs | 127 | 13% | 23% | 34% | 22% | 8% |
| Other crime | 109 | 2% | 3% | 67% | 20% | 8% |
| Vehicle crime (cars stolen and broken into) | 87 | 6% | 1% | 21% | 64% | 8% |
Uses the latest outcome police have recorded so far. 5% of these crimes are still open, so the final figures may be a little higher.
Road collisions
South Hams, 2023 to 2025: 149 road collisions a year with someone hurt, 29 of them with someone killed or seriously injured. 9 collisions were fatal in those 3 years.
1.6 a year per 1,000 residents (Great Britain 1.5). 20% of them killed or seriously injured someone (Great Britain 26%).
Collisions on public roads that the police recorded where someone was hurt, counted where they happened, so busy through roads and town centres with few residents come out high. Serious and slight use the Department for Transport's adjusted severity, comparable between police forces. Source: Department for Transport road casualty statistics (STATS19), Open Government Licence v3.0.
Towns and cities in South Hams
Postcode districts in South Hams
Embed this on your site: a free live safety card for South Hams.
Questions about crime in South Hams
- Is South Hams a safe place to live?
- South Hams scores 9 out of 10 for safety (very low crime), compared with every neighbourhood in England, Wales and Northern Ireland.
- Is crime going up or down in South Hams?
- Up 40% over 5 years, from 2,761 recorded crimes a year to 3,878.
- What is the most common crime in South Hams?
- The most common recorded crime is violence and sexual offences (assaults, harassment, sexual offences), about 15 per 1,000 residents a year.
- How often does crime lead to a charge in South Hams?
- In South Hams, 5% of crimes reported between September 2024 and August 2025 led to someone being charged or summonsed (England and Wales: 9%). 29% were closed without a suspect being identified.
- How many burglaries are solved in South Hams?
- Of 163 burglaries reported in South Hams between September 2024 and August 2025, 13% led to someone being charged or summonsed and 63% were closed with no suspect identified.
- How many cars are stolen in South Hams?
- In the South Devon and Dartmoor community safety partnership (South Hams, Teignbridge and West Devon), the police recorded 159 cars stolen in 2025/26 (April 2025 to March 2026), 0.5 per 1,000 residents, down 9% on the year before.
- Is vandalism common in South Hams?
- 704 acts of vandalism to homes, other buildings and vehicles were recorded in the South Devon and Dartmoor community safety partnership (South Hams, Teignbridge and West Devon) in 2025/26, 2.4 per 1,000 residents, 0.5 times the England and Wales average.
- How many murders were there in South Hams last year?
- 1 homicide (murder or manslaughter) was recorded in the South Devon and Dartmoor community safety partnership (South Hams, Teignbridge and West Devon) in 2025/26, against 0 the year before.