England and Wales See Rise in Robbery, Harassment, and Fraud, Official Statistics Reveal

New statistics from the Office for National Statistics (ONS) indicate an increase in several crime categories across England and Wales for the year ending March 2026. The broader Crime Survey for England and Wales estimated a total of 9.6 million incidents, showing no significant overall change from the previous year. However, specific offences have seen an upward trend.

Robbery figures rose by 10 per cent, reaching 87,362 incidents. This increase is largely attributed to a 91 per cent surge in business robberies, which climbed to 29,669. The ONS notes that this rise is primarily due to a change in recording practices from April 2025, where shop thefts involving violence or threats are now classified as robbery. Personal property robberies, conversely, decreased by 9 per cent.

Recorded incidents of rape also increased by 4 per cent, totaling 74,727. Violence without injury saw a slight increase of 2 per cent, while violence with injury decreased by 3 per cent. The ONS advises caution when interpreting police-recorded figures for these offences, as trends can be influenced by changes in recording methods and an increase in victim reporting.

Harassment, as recorded by the police, rose by 6 per cent. While these police figures are not considered a definitive indicator of trends, the ONS survey identified a statistically significant rise in repeated harassment, affecting 3.5 per cent of adults aged 16 and over, approximately 1.7 million people. These survey estimates are interim.

The survey also revealed a 10 per cent increase in the number of adult fraud victims, reaching 3.8 million. Incidents of bank and credit account fraud escalated by 15 per cent to around 2.8 million. The total number of fraud incidents remained stable with no statistically significant change, standing at 4.5 million.