# Crime and justice in Dorset The south east of the South West. 391,036 people (mid-2025 estimate) in 2,491 square kilometres. 13 layers about crime and justice for Dorset, each at the level its publisher released it, with its own date and source. In: [South West](https://openindex.co.uk/south-west) ## Is Dorset safe? What police records show In the 12 months to August 2026, police recorded crimes and anti-social behaviour in Dorset at a rate of 53.9 per 1,000 people. That compares with 83.5 per 1,000 people across South West. Across England as a whole, the recorded crime rate was 96.3 per 1,000 people. In August 2026 alone, 2,228 cases of crime and anti-social behaviour were recorded in Dorset. In the 12 months to August 2026, the most common types were violence and sexual offences (7,666), anti-social behaviour (5,593) and other crime (2,841). A year earlier, the recorded crime rate in Dorset was 55.9 per 1,000 people. Worked out by Open Index from police.uk crime records and ONS and NISRA population estimates. Rates are per resident, so places that many people work in or visit, such as Westminster, the City of London and other city centres, have far higher rates than their residents alone would suggest. ## Recorded crime rate Dorset: **53.9 per 1,000** (August 2026, council level, England, Wales and Northern Ireland only). Source: Worked out by Open Index from police.uk crime records and ONS and NISRA population estimates. Published 30 September 2026. In the 12 months to August 2026, police recorded crimes and anti-social behaviour in Dorset at a rate of 53.9 per 1,000 people. That compares with 83.5 per 1,000 people across South West. - Against South West: 35% lower (83.5 per 1,000) [Map](https://openindex.co.uk/map/recorded-crime-rate#place=E06000059) · [Source and method](https://openindex.co.uk/sources/recorded-crime-rate) · [Ranking](https://openindex.co.uk/rankings/recorded-crime-rate/south-west) · https://openindex.co.uk/dorset/crime#l-crime-rate ## Crime and anti-social behaviour Dorset: **2,228** (August 2026, council level, England, Wales and Northern Ireland only). Source: Police.uk. Published 30 September 2026. [Map](https://openindex.co.uk/map/recorded-crime#place=E06000059) · [Source and method](https://openindex.co.uk/sources/recorded-crime) · https://openindex.co.uk/dorset/crime#l-crime-count ## Anti-social behaviour Dorset: **5,593** (August 2026, council level, England, Wales and Northern Ireland only). Source: Police.uk. Published 30 September 2026. [Map](https://openindex.co.uk/map/anti-social-behaviour#place=E06000059) · [Source and method](https://openindex.co.uk/sources/anti-social-behaviour) · https://openindex.co.uk/dorset/crime#l-crime-anti-social ## Burglary Dorset: **724** (August 2026, council level, England, Wales and Northern Ireland only). Source: Police.uk. Published 30 September 2026. [Map](https://openindex.co.uk/map/burglary#place=E06000059) · [Source and method](https://openindex.co.uk/sources/burglary) · https://openindex.co.uk/dorset/crime#l-crime-burglary ## Criminal damage and arson Dorset: **1,616** (August 2026, council level, England, Wales and Northern Ireland only). Source: Police.uk. Published 30 September 2026. [Map](https://openindex.co.uk/map/criminal-damage-and-arson#place=E06000059) · [Source and method](https://openindex.co.uk/sources/criminal-damage-and-arson) · https://openindex.co.uk/dorset/crime#l-crime-damage ## Drug offences Dorset: **349** (August 2026, council level, England, Wales and Northern Ireland only). Source: Police.uk. Published 30 September 2026. [Map](https://openindex.co.uk/map/drug-offences#place=E06000059) · [Source and method](https://openindex.co.uk/sources/drug-offences) · https://openindex.co.uk/dorset/crime#l-crime-drugs ## Other crime Dorset: **2,841** (August 2026, council level, England, Wales and Northern Ireland only). Source: Police.uk. Published 30 September 2026. [Map](https://openindex.co.uk/map/other-crime#place=E06000059) · [Source and method](https://openindex.co.uk/sources/other-crime) · https://openindex.co.uk/dorset/crime#l-crime-other ## Robbery Dorset: **96** (August 2026, council level, England, Wales and Northern Ireland only). Source: Police.uk. Published 30 September 2026. [Map](https://openindex.co.uk/map/robbery#place=E06000059) · [Source and method](https://openindex.co.uk/sources/robbery) · https://openindex.co.uk/dorset/crime#l-crime-robbery ## Shoplifting Dorset: **1,465** (August 2026, council level, England, Wales and Northern Ireland only). Source: Police.uk. Published 30 September 2026. [Map](https://openindex.co.uk/map/shoplifting#place=E06000059) · [Source and method](https://openindex.co.uk/sources/shoplifting) · https://openindex.co.uk/dorset/crime#l-crime-shoplifting ## Theft from the person Dorset: **55** (August 2026, council level, England, Wales and Northern Ireland only). Source: Police.uk. Published 30 September 2026. [Map](https://openindex.co.uk/map/theft-from-the-person#place=E06000059) · [Source and method](https://openindex.co.uk/sources/theft-from-the-person) · https://openindex.co.uk/dorset/crime#l-crime-theft-person ## Vehicle crime Dorset: **667** (August 2026, council level, England, Wales and Northern Ireland only). Source: Police.uk. Published 30 September 2026. [Map](https://openindex.co.uk/map/vehicle-crime#place=E06000059) · [Source and method](https://openindex.co.uk/sources/vehicle-crime) · https://openindex.co.uk/dorset/crime#l-crime-vehicle ## Violence and sexual offences Dorset: **7,666** (August 2026, council level, England, Wales and Northern Ireland only). Source: Police.uk. Published 30 September 2026. [Map](https://openindex.co.uk/map/violence-and-sexual-offences#place=E06000059) · [Source and method](https://openindex.co.uk/sources/violence-and-sexual-offences) · https://openindex.co.uk/dorset/crime#l-crime-violence ## Street-level crime Map point level, England, Wales and Northern Ireland only. Source: Police.uk. Published as points, so there is no single figure for Dorset. The map shows each one. [Map](https://openindex.co.uk/map/street-crime#place=E06000059) · [Source and method](https://openindex.co.uk/sources/street-crime) · https://openindex.co.uk/dorset/crime#l-street-crime ## More on this place - [Overview](https://openindex.co.uk/dorset) - [Housing](https://openindex.co.uk/dorset/housing) (17) - [People](https://openindex.co.uk/dorset/people) (24) - [Deprivation](https://openindex.co.uk/dorset/deprivation) (8) - [Health](https://openindex.co.uk/dorset/health) (4) - [Education](https://openindex.co.uk/dorset/education) (2) - [Environment](https://openindex.co.uk/dorset/environment) (9) - [Transport](https://openindex.co.uk/dorset/transport) (4) - [Connectivity](https://openindex.co.uk/dorset/connectivity) (5) - [Planning](https://openindex.co.uk/dorset/planning) (3) - [Economy](https://openindex.co.uk/dorset/economy) (4) - [Council tax](https://openindex.co.uk/dorset/council-tax) (10) - [Elections](https://openindex.co.uk/dorset/elections) (7) - [Local services](https://openindex.co.uk/dorset/services) (3) - [Sources](https://openindex.co.uk/dorset/sources) (28) The same figures as JSON: https://openindex.co.uk/v1/places/E06000059/data?family=crime ## How to cite Source: Open Index, openindex.co.uk. Link to this page, https://openindex.co.uk/dorset/crime, or to one figure with its anchor, https://openindex.co.uk/dorset/crime#l-crime-rate. Open Index's own text and the figures it works out are licensed under CC BY 4.0 (https://creativecommons.org/licenses/by/4.0/). Source data keeps its publishers' licences, named with each figure. Give each figure's period and source with it. Snapshot 2026.10.10. The HTML page: https://openindex.co.uk/dorset/crime