Crime in Sawbridgeworth
Recorded crime in Sawbridgeworth is 0.9 times the East Hertfordshire average and 0.6 times the England and Wales average. Over 5 years it has risen 15%. Most of the harm comes from violence and sexual offences (assaults, harassment, sexual offences). Police data to August 2026.
Within 1.5 km of the centre of Sawbridgeworth: about 10,105 residents in 8 neighbourhoods.
- Safety in the UK
- 7/10Low crime
- Living
- 7.3/10Good
- 5-year change
- +15%more crimes
- vs the council
- 0.9×the East Hertfordshire average
Neighbourhoods by Safety
Within 1.5 km of the centre of Sawbridgeworth.
Crime over 5 years
Up 15% in 5 years Recorded crimes within 1.5 km of Sawbridgeworth, anti-social behaviour left out.
What is recorded
Crime severity: 0.9× the East Hertfordshire average (0.6× the England and Wales average). 42 recorded crimes per 1,000 residents a year.
- Violence and sexual offences (assaults, harassment, sexual offences): 60% of the harm here
- Burglary: 20% of the harm here
- Vehicle crime (cars stolen and broken into): 5% of the harm here
Anti-social behaviour: 14 incidents per 1,000 residents a year, not scored. Not a crime, so it is not part of the Safety score.
Crimes recorded in East Hertfordshire (the whole council area)
April 2025 to March 2026, for the whole East Hertfordshire council area, not only Sawbridgeworth. 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 | 202 | 1.3 | Down 25% |
| Cars broken into | 231 | 1.5 | Down 25% |
| Vandalism (homes, other buildings and vehicles) | 390 | 2.5 | Down 5% |
| Burglary of homes | 209 | 1.3 | Up 15% |
| Homicide (murder and manslaughter) | 0 | - | - |
Under 10 a year: no rate or change, the numbers are too small to compare.
How often crimes lead to a charge in CM21
In CM21, the postcode district at the centre of Sawbridgeworth, 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) | 239 | 4% | 4% | 77% | 11% | 3% |
| Vehicle crime (cars stolen and broken into) | 65 | 0% | 0% | 9% | 91% | 0% |
| Criminal damage and arson (vandalism) | 57 | 4% | 0% | 32% | 60% | 5% |
Uses the latest outcome police have recorded so far. 6% of these crimes are still open, so the final figures may be a little higher.
Road collisions
East Hertfordshire, 2023 to 2025: 179 road collisions a year with someone hurt, 38 of them with someone killed or seriously injured. 12 collisions were fatal in those 3 years.
1.1 a year per 1,000 residents (Great Britain 1.5). 21% 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.
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 | 0.3 |
| Burglary | 3.6 |
| Violence and sexual offences (assaults, harassment, sexual offences) | 17.0 |
| Drugs | 0.9 |
| Possession of weapons (knives and other weapons) | 0.4 |
| Other crime | 1.1 |
| Other theft | 3.5 |
| Theft from the person (pickpocketing, bag snatching) | 0.2 |
| Vehicle crime (cars stolen and broken into) | 6.1 |
| Criminal damage and arson (vandalism) | 4.5 |
| Public order | 2.9 |
| Bicycle theft | 0.5 |
| Shoplifting | 1.2 |
Postcode districts in Sawbridgeworth
Nearby towns
Council: East Hertfordshire
Embed this on your site: a free live safety card for Sawbridgeworth.
Questions about crime in Sawbridgeworth
- Is Sawbridgeworth a safe place to live?
- Sawbridgeworth scores 7 out of 10 for safety (low crime), compared with every neighbourhood in England, Wales and Northern Ireland. Crime severity is 0.9 times the East Hertfordshire average.
- Is crime going up or down in Sawbridgeworth?
- Up 15% over 5 years, from 377 recorded crimes a year to 433.
- What is the most common crime in Sawbridgeworth?
- The most common recorded crime is violence and sexual offences (assaults, harassment, sexual offences), about 17 per 1,000 residents a year.
- How does crime in Sawbridgeworth compare with East Hertfordshire?
- Crime severity in Sawbridgeworth is 0.9 times the East Hertfordshire average.
- How often does crime lead to a charge in Sawbridgeworth?
- In CM21, the postcode district at the centre of Sawbridgeworth, 5% of crimes reported between September 2024 and August 2025 led to someone being charged or summonsed (England and Wales: 9%). 37% were closed without a suspect being identified.
- How many cars are stolen in Sawbridgeworth?
- In East Hertfordshire, the council area Sawbridgeworth is in, the police recorded 202 cars stolen in 2025/26 (April 2025 to March 2026), 1.3 per 1,000 residents, down 25% on the year before.
- Is vandalism common in Sawbridgeworth?
- 390 acts of vandalism to homes, other buildings and vehicles were recorded in 2025/26, in East Hertfordshire, the council area Sawbridgeworth is in, 2.5 per 1,000 residents, 0.5 times the England and Wales average.
- How many murders were there in Sawbridgeworth last year?
- No homicides (murder or manslaughter) were recorded in 2025/26, in East Hertfordshire, the council area Sawbridgeworth is in, against 1 the year before.