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Crime

Crime in Hertsmere by area

Every neighbourhood we cover, ranked by crimes per 1,000 residents a year, from police.uk figures for June to August 2026. Highest first. Pick a type of crime to re-rank, or tap a column to sort.

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2,534crimes recordedJune to August 2026
+9%on the 3 months beforemore crime
Shenleylowest rate61.1 per 1,000 a year
103middle areacrimes per 1,000 a year

Darker means more crime per resident. Tap an area for its page.

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Most improved: Elstree (-9%), Bushey Heath (-7%) and Merry Hill (0%), compared with the three months before.

Every area, ranked

#Most common
1BorehamwoodWD6 · 41,417 residents 118.2▲ 11%violence
2RadlettWD7 · 11,123 residents 117.6▲ 25%violence
3ElstreeWD6 · 16,868 residents 109.3▼ 9%violence
4Potters BarEN6 · 24,233 residents 103▲ 4%violence
5BusheyWD23 · 38,531 residents 95▲ 3%violence
6Merry HillWD23 · 10,541 residents 83.90%violence
7Bushey HeathWD23 · 23,685 residents 65.7▼ 7%violence
8ShenleyWD7 · 4,324 residents 61.1▲ 50%anti-social behaviour

Change compares the last three months with the three before. A dash means too few crimes to compare fairly.

Why busy centres look worst

Crimes are counted where they happen, but residents are counted where they live. Town centres and shopping areas have lots of shops, bars and visitors and not many residents, so their rates come out high even though most people there are just passing through.

How we work it out

Each area is a circle round its middle, the same as on its MeBabber page. We count the crimes police.uk records inside the circle over the last three months and turn that into a yearly figure, then divide by the number of people who live inside the circle, from the 2021 Census. Police locations are moved slightly on purpose to protect victims, so treat small differences between neighbouring areas with a pinch of salt.

Sources: data.police.uk and the Office for National Statistics, both under the Open Government Licence. Figures update every month.

Crime in every area

Questions people ask

Which areas of Hertsmere have the lowest crime?

Over June to August 2026, the areas with the fewest crimes per 1,000 residents were Shenley, Bushey Heath, Merry Hill, Bushey and Potters Bar.

Which areas of Hertsmere have the highest crime?

Leaving aside the big shopping and industrial areas, where visitors and workers push the figures up, the highest rates over June to August 2026 were in Borehamwood, Radlett, Elstree, Potters Bar and Bushey.

Is crime going up or down in Hertsmere?

Across Hertsmere, 2,534 crimes were recorded over June to August 2026, 9% more than the three months before.

How is crime per 1,000 residents worked out?

We count the crimes police.uk records inside each area, turn the last three months into a yearly figure, and divide by the number of people who live there from the 2021 Census.