Crime

Crime in North Devon 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.

2,022crimes recordedJune to August 2026

+9%on the 3 months beforemore crime

North Moltonlowest rate3.4 per 1,000 a year

32.9middle areacrimes per 1,000 a year

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

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Most improved: Ilfracombe (3%), Barnstaple (6%) and South Molton (58%), compared with the three months before.

Every area, ranked

#				Most common
1	BarnstapleEX31 · 26,256 residents	140.9	▲ 6%	violence
2	IlfracombeEX34 · 11,037 residents	137	▲ 3%	violence
3	South MoltonEX36 · 6,088 residents	87.4	▲ 58%	violence
4	WoolacombeEX34 · 2,037 residents	82.5	▲ 83%	violence
5	Combe MartinEX34 · 3,958 residents	53.6	▲ 51%	violence
6	WitheridgeEX16 · 2,558 residents	50	▲ 23%	violence
7	BickingtonEX31 · 8,677 residents	43.3	▼ 27%	violence
8	LyntonEX35 · 1,608 residents	34.8	▲ 27%	violence
9	FremingtonEX31 · 3,894 residents	32.9	▼ 9%	violence
10	BrauntonEX33 · 11,099 residents	31.7	▲ 10%	violence
11	LynmouthEX35 · 1,608 residents	24.9	0%	violence
12	ChulmleighEX18 · 2,326 residents	24.1	–	violence
13	LandkeyEX32 · 4,190 residents	18.1	▲ 6%	violence
14	Bratton FlemingEX31 · 2,055 residents	17.5	–	violence
15	Bishop's TawtonEX32 · 2,294 residents	13.9	–	violence
16	Bishops NymptonEX36 · 2,133 residents	7.5	–	criminal damage
17	North MoltonEX36 · 2,327 residents	3.4	▼ 83%	violence

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.

Questions people ask

Which areas of North Devon have the lowest crime?

Over June to August 2026, the areas with the fewest crimes per 1,000 residents were North Molton, Bishops Nympton, Bishop's Tawton, Bratton Fleming and Landkey.

Which areas of North Devon 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 Barnstaple, Ilfracombe, South Molton, Woolacombe and Combe Martin.

Is crime going up or down in North Devon?

Across North Devon, 2,022 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.