Crime in Sunderland
Recorded crime in Sunderland is 1.2 times the England and Wales average. Over 5 years it has fallen 16%. Most of the harm comes from violence and sexual offences (assaults, harassment, sexual offences). Police data to August 2026.
288,606 residents in 185 neighbourhoods. 1% live in busy town or city centres.
- Safety in the UK
- 3/10Above average crime
- Safety in the world
- 7/10Low crime
- Living
- 7.2/10Good
- 5-year change
- −16%fewer crimes
Crime over 5 years
Down 16% in 5 years Recorded crimes in Sunderland, anti-social behaviour left out.
What is recorded
Crime severity: 1.2× the England and Wales average. 103 recorded crimes per 1,000 residents a year.
- Violence and sexual offences (assaults, harassment, sexual offences): 63% of the harm here
- Burglary: 15% of the harm here
- Other theft: 5% of the harm here
"Violence and sexual offences" is 63% 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: 28 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 | 0.7 |
| Burglary | 5.8 |
| Violence and sexual offences (assaults, harassment, sexual offences) | 37.6 |
| Drugs | 2.1 |
| Possession of weapons (knives and other weapons) | 0.9 |
| Other crime | 3.1 |
| Other theft | 9.1 |
| Theft from the person (pickpocketing, bag snatching) | 0.7 |
| Vehicle crime (cars stolen and broken into) | 5.6 |
| Criminal damage and arson (vandalism) | 15.0 |
| Public order | 12.2 |
| Bicycle theft | 0.9 |
| Shoplifting | 9.4 |
What crimes are recorded in Sunderland
93.2 crimes per 1,000 residents were recorded in Sunderland 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.
| Type | Crimes in 2025/26 | Per 1,000 residents | Change on 2024/25 |
|---|---|---|---|
| Cars stolen | 478 | 1.7 | Down 11% |
| Cars broken into | 501 | 1.7 | Down 46% |
| Vehicle tampering | 193 | 0.67 | Down 48% |
| Vandalism to homes | 1,546 | 5.4 | Up 8% |
| Vandalism to other buildings | 267 | 0.93 | Down 22% |
| Vandalism to vehicles | 784 | 2.7 | Down 12% |
| Arson | 299 | 1.0 | Up 8% |
| Burglary of homes | 818 | 2.8 | Down 7% |
| Burglary of businesses | 479 | 1.7 | Down 28% |
| Homicide (murder and manslaughter) | 5 | - | - |
| Carrying a knife or blade | 103 | 0.36 | Up 5% |
| Carrying other weapons (including guns) | 182 | 0.63 | Down 9% |
| Robbery of people | 165 | 0.57 | Down 5% |
| Robbery of businesses | 278 | 0.96 | Up 286% |
| Violence with injury | 3,244 | 11.2 | About the same |
| Violence without injury | 3,221 | 11.2 | About the same |
| Stalking and harassment | 3,195 | 11.1 | Up 2% |
| Sexual offences | 1,148 | 4.0 | Up 12% |
| Shoplifting | 3,559 | 12.3 | Up 10% |
| Bicycle theft | 121 | 0.42 | Down 37% |
| Theft from the person (pickpocketing, bag snatching) | 133 | 0.46 | Up 13% |
| Drug dealing | 210 | 0.73 | Down 38% |
| Drug possession | 503 | 1.7 | Down 15% |
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.
Northumbria Police area: 1,151 offences involving a knife or sharp instrument in 2025/26 (1,056 the year before). This covers the whole police force area, not only Sunderland.
Source: Home Office, police recorded knife crime by police force.
Police and Crime Commissioner: Susan Dungworth (Northumbria) →
How often crimes lead to a charge
In Sunderland, 8% 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) | 11,114 | 6% | 2% | 0% | 34% | 58% |
| Shoplifting | 3,332 | 22% | 1% | 0% | 53% | 24% |
| Criminal damage and arson (vandalism) | 3,243 | 4% | 2% | 0% | 70% | 24% |
| Public order | 2,448 | 8% | 1% | 0% | 39% | 51% |
| Other theft | 1,893 | 2% | 0% | 0% | 69% | 29% |
| Burglary | 1,744 | 8% | 0% | 0% | 78% | 14% |
| Vehicle crime (cars stolen and broken into) | 1,430 | 4% | 0% | 0% | 83% | 12% |
| Other crime | 1,080 | 6% | 2% | 1% | 29% | 63% |
| Drugs | 919 | 17% | 12% | 0% | 27% | 44% |
| Robbery | 332 | 10% | 0% | 0% | 63% | 27% |
| Possession of weapons (knives and other weapons) | 280 | 30% | 7% | 0% | 26% | 37% |
| Bicycle theft | 138 | 1% | 0% | 0% | 86% | 12% |
| Theft from the person (pickpocketing, bag snatching) | 120 | 2% | 0% | 0% | 65% | 33% |
Uses the latest outcome police have recorded so far. 41% of these crimes are still open, so the final figures may be a little higher.
Road collisions
Sunderland, 2023 to 2025: 329 road collisions a year with someone hurt, 73 of them with someone killed or seriously injured. 16 collisions were fatal in those 3 years.
1.1 a year per 1,000 residents (Great Britain 1.5). 22% 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 Sunderland
Postcode districts in Sunderland
Embed this on your site: a free live safety card for Sunderland.
Questions about crime in Sunderland
- Is Sunderland a safe place to live?
- Sunderland scores 3 out of 10 for safety (above average crime), compared with every neighbourhood in England, Wales and Northern Ireland.
- Is crime going up or down in Sunderland?
- Down 16% over 5 years, from 29,441 recorded crimes a year to 24,682.
- What is the most common crime in Sunderland?
- The most common recorded crime is violence and sexual offences (assaults, harassment, sexual offences), about 38 per 1,000 residents a year.
- How often does crime lead to a charge in Sunderland?
- In Sunderland, 8% of crimes reported between September 2024 and August 2025 led to someone being charged or summonsed (England and Wales: 9%). 49% were closed without a suspect being identified.
- How many burglaries are solved in Sunderland?
- Of 1,744 burglaries reported in Sunderland between September 2024 and August 2025, 8% led to someone being charged or summonsed and 78% were closed with no suspect identified.
- How many cars are stolen in Sunderland?
- In Sunderland, the police recorded 478 cars stolen in 2025/26 (April 2025 to March 2026), 1.7 per 1,000 residents, down 11% on the year before.
- Is vandalism common in Sunderland?
- 2,597 acts of vandalism to homes, other buildings and vehicles were recorded in Sunderland in 2025/26, 9.0 per 1,000 residents, 1.9 times the England and Wales average.
- How many murders were there in Sunderland last year?
- 5 homicides (murder or manslaughter) were recorded in Sunderland in 2025/26, against 3 the year before.