Leicester is a very safe place to live. Many people living in outlying areas go into the city during the week to work, while others stay nearby and study if they are attending one of the universities there.
Make friends with your local postman and milkman. If you are going away, let them know and they can keep an eye on your house. They are out and about early which is when may burglars like to strike.
Of course, crime does happen no matter where you are. Leicester is no different. Its status as a city points to higher population levels, and this alone in a built-up area can mean greater levels of crime occur.
Identifying the more common crimes reported in Leicester
Leicester city centre is the hub of the city. in November 2016, 413 crimes that happened somewhere in Leicester were reported to the police. If you view crime statistics for other parts of the country, anti-social behaviour tends to crop up as one of the most commonly-occurring crimes to be reported. However, this isn’t true of Leicester.
The year spanning December 2015 to November 2016 saw 653 such crimes notified to police. This accounted for 14.22% of the total number of crimes seen in Leicester city centre. In contrast, some other built-up areas have seen crimes relating to anti-social behaviour reaching around 25% of the total.
If you’re considering installing a CCTV system on the outside of your home, you must respect the privacy of others and make sure that the cameras are not directed at anyone else’s home or property. It might be a good idea to discuss any plans with your neighbours.
In Leicester, the most-reported crime for the year given was shoplifting. This accounted for exactly 25% of all the crimes reported in the city centre, with 1,148 separate reports made. Other thefts, which is a term given to thefts that don’t neatly fall into other categories, accounted for 12.24% of crimes, with 562 reports made.
How safe is Leicester?
Given the population levels, the city centre is very safe for most people, even though reading crime statistics may give you other ideas. Burglaries were very low for the year, with 199 taking place. There were more instances of bicycles being stolen, with 240 thefts reported. This is opposite to how the statistics work out in some areas.
Whatever you can do to protect your property – within the law, of course – is well-advised. Installing closed-circuit television cameras to cover your property entrances, adding security lighting and making sure you lock all doors and windows whenever you go out are all good measures to consider. The more you can do to make your property less attractive to burglars, the better.
