Data and Intelligence
The following information is a summary of key findings from the ONS's Police Force Area data tables and monthly Police data. This summary was viewed in 2025 and was correct at the time of writing.
Crime Trends in Hartlepool
The number of Recorded Offences in Hartlepool (Excluding Fraud) was 130.1 per 1,000 population for the year ending December 2025. This is higher than the North East Rate of 96.44 per 1,000 which itself is higher than the national rate of 84.09 per 1,000. Hartlepool’s rate is 7th Highest of 292 local authorities. The rate has decreased from a peak of 151 per 1,000 in the year ending June 2023.
Violence against the person, Theft and Shoplifting are the most common types of crime with 46.35, 42.48 and 24 offences per 1,000 population in the year ending December 2025 respectively. The crime types where Hartlepool ranked highest nationally were Criminal Damage and Arson (2nd highest Local Authority in England), Shoplifting (2nd highest) and Miscellaneous Crime (4th Highest). Theft from the person was the only crime type where Hartlepool’s rate was in the lowest half of local authorities.
Bicycle Theft has increased since December 2024 which is against regional and national trends whilst Stalking and Harassment offences in Hartlepool have reduced over the last 2 years. Possession of weapons has decreased since December 2024. Drug Offences, Robbery, Sexual Offences and Theft offences have seen an increasing trend in Hartlepool over the last few years.
At the local level, Burn Valley and Headland & Harbour wards consistently report the highest crime rates, though trends are volatile, likely due to smaller populations. Finally, street-level data confirms that crime is concentrated in Hartlepool’s most deprived areas (IMD 1–4), highlighting the strong link between deprivation and crime prevalence.
Fire Authority Overview
Cleveland Fire and Rescue Service continues to report the highest rate of secondary fires in England, with a figure of 17 per 10,000 population. This is significantly higher—by six points—than the next highest rate recorded in County Durham. Similarly, Cleveland also leads in the number of false alarms with good intent, reporting a rate of 9 per 10,000 population. While the Isles of Scilly technically report the highest rate at 13 per 10,000, this figure is likely skewed due to the area's very small population base, making Cleveland’s figures more indicative of a systemic issue.
Domestic Violence
Domestic abuse remains a pressing concern in Hartlepool. Since 2015, the domestic abuse rate has increased by 10 per 1,000 population and currently sits approximately 15 points higher than the national average. This trend aligns with broader patterns observed across the North East. While hospital admissions for violence (including sexual violence) had nearly halved since 2010, recent data indicates a reversal, with admissions beginning to rise again.
Reoffending Patterns
Reoffending rates in Hartlepool have shown a concerning upward trend across both male and female populations over the past three years. Although juvenile reoffending saw a sharp decline in 2021, this was short-lived, with rates rising again the following year—possibly due to the small population size affecting statistical stability. Hartlepool consistently reports higher reoffending rates across nearly all age groups compared to both the national and regional averages, with the exceptions being the 10–14 age bracket.
Street-Level Crime Patterns
Deprived areas and in particular the Town Centre and its surrounding areas see the highest
concentration of criminal activity.
Monthly crime rates at Ward level can be volatile due to low numbers though Burn Valley and the Headland and Harbour ward have highest rates for overall crime figures and most crime types.
Hartlepool ASB figures
Figures for anti-social behaviour reported to the council show an increasing trend with fewer than 400 incidents reported in 2020,2021 and 2022 but over 600 reported in 2023 and 2024. April 2025 was the month with the most incidents (85) followed by June 2023 (84) and July 2024 (77). Around 1 in 5 incidents reported to the council is related to Drugs / Substance misuse and dealing which was the most common category of incident. Victoria is the ward with the most incidents of ASB followed by Burn Valley and Foggy Furze. Victoria in particular saw a significant increase in incidents with the number in 2023 (102) more than double the previous year (48) and increasing further in 2024 to 141.