All best of norfolk
Safest places to live in Norfolk: the eight lowest-crime towns and villages
Of 38 Norfolk towns and large villages checked, these eight had the least recorded crime per resident in the year to July 2026, with Hingham the lowest.
We checked 38 Norfolk towns and large villages, and these eight had the least recorded crime per resident in the 12 months to July 2026. Hingham, the lowest, had 48 crimes in the year for about 2,500 people. Taverham, fourth, shows that a low rate is possible in a place of nearly 10,000.
Norfolk starts from a low base. Norfolk Constabulary recorded 61.5 crimes per 1,000 people in the year ending March 2026, against 84.7 for England and Wales, which was the seventh-lowest rate of the 42 police force areas with a published figure (ONS). Broadland had the lowest rate of any Norfolk district, 34.8 per 1,000, and one of the ten lowest of the 290-odd community safety partnership areas in England and Wales. North Norfolk and South Norfolk were close behind at 42.0 and 41.7. Norwich and Great Yarmouth are the only districts above the national rate.
District averages include miles of farmland where almost nothing is reported, and they hide a lot of difference between places. Dersingham, third on this list, is in King’s Lynn and West Norfolk, the district with the third-highest rate in the county. So we compared parishes directly, crimes against residents, using the method set out at the end of this guide. House prices are HM Land Registry medians for the year to June 2026.
Two cautions. Police.uk places each crime at the nearest of a set of anonymised map points, so a crime just outside a parish can be counted in it and the other way round. And in a small place a few incidents move the rate a long way: one more assault in Hingham adds 0.4 to its figure.
1. Hingham: 18.9 crimes per 1,000 residents
Hingham had 48 crimes in the year among 2,543 residents, no more than eight in any month, and in October 2025 police.uk recorded none at all. There were two burglaries and 13 anti-social behaviour reports.
It is a small town 13 miles west of Norwich and about 6 miles from Wymondham, and its centre was largely rebuilt in the Georgian period after a fire in 1688. Hingham Primary was rated Good in July 2023, and Hingham Surgery on Hardingham Street was accepting new patients in September 2026. The median of 43 sales was £320,000.
Hingham suits buyers for whom low crime comes first, including retired people, provided they are content with an hourly bus to Norwich and a drive to the nearest station.
2. Mulbarton: 19.2 per 1,000
Mulbarton, south-west of Norwich, had 77 crimes among 4,020 residents, with five burglaries and 19 anti-social behaviour reports.
The village is built round its common, more than 45 acres of grass, ponds and football pitches, with the primary school and the surgery on its edge. Mulbarton Primary was rated Good in February 2022 and is a named feeder for Hethersett Academy, which is rated Outstanding, although in 2023 the academy at first refused 35 Mulbarton children who had feeder priority. The Purple Line 38 and 38A buses run about twice an hour and take about 25 minutes to Castle Meadow. The median of 52 sales was £312,500.
Mulbarton suits families who want a village primary and a bus into Norwich, and who will check the secondary admissions position before they buy.
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3. Dersingham: 20.2 per 1,000
Dersingham had 96 crimes among 4,753 residents and one burglary in the year, the joint lowest count of the 38 places.
It is a large village next to the Sandringham estate, whose 600 acres of parkland and woodland are open all year. The Lynx 34 bus runs every 30 minutes to King’s Lynn, taking about 12 minutes to the Queen Elizabeth Hospital and 22 to the railway station. The village has a health centre, a Co-op and a primary school rated Good at its November 2023 inspection; the secondary is Smithdon High School in Hunstanton, for ages 11 to 16. The median of 77 sales was £300,000.
Dersingham suits retired buyers and families in west Norfolk who want a hospital and a station a short bus ride away.
Read our full Dersingham guide
4. Taverham: 20.7 per 1,000
Taverham is the largest place on the list, with 9,837 residents at the 2021 Census and 204 crimes in the year, including five burglaries.
A child can go from infant school to sixth form without leaving the village: Ghost Hill Infant and Nursery School was rated Outstanding in December 2023, and Taverham High School, which has a sixth form, was rated Good in every area in May 2023. The X29 bus runs about every 30 minutes and takes about half an hour to Castle Meadow. The median of 156 sales was £320,000.
Taverham suits families who want every stage of state school in one place on the edge of Norwich.
5. Drayton: 23.7 per 1,000
Drayton, 4.3 miles north-west of Norwich, had 128 crimes among 5,393 residents. It had 11 burglaries, the most of the eight, which is 2.0 per 1,000 residents.
It has a Tesco superstore on Fakenham Road, a medical practice, infant and junior schools, and buses 28 and X29 each about every 30 minutes into the city. Taverham High and Hellesdon High, both 11 to 18, are the nearby secondaries. The median of 67 sales was £330,000; leaving out the 11 new houses on Binney Road, it was £301,250.
Drayton suits Norwich commuters who want a large supermarket in the village and low overall crime, and who accept a higher burglary count than elsewhere on this list.
6. Wroxham: 26.0 per 1,000
Wroxham parish had 44 crimes among 1,694 residents, one burglary and four anti-social behaviour reports, and none at all in February 2026. It is the smallest place on the list, and the figure covers only the Broadland side of the river. Hoveton, across the Bure in North Norfolk, recorded 62.1 crimes per 1,000 residents.
Hoveton and Wroxham station is on the Bittern Line, with trains to Norwich roughly hourly in 14 to 19 minutes. The GP is the Hoveton and Wroxham Medical Centre on Stalham Road. This is the dearest place on the list: the median of 24 sales in Wroxham parish was £437,500.
Wroxham suits buyers who want the Broads and a railway station, and can pay for both.
7. Blofield: 28.9 per 1,000
Blofield, 5 miles east of Norwich, had 118 crimes among 4,083 residents, with four burglaries.
It has a GP surgery on Plantation Road that was taking new patients in September 2026, a post office open 7.30am to 9pm every day, and Blofield Primary, which remained Good in June 2024. The new A47 dual carriageway from Blofield to North Burlingham opened in May 2026. The Green Line 15 bus is roughly hourly. The median of 66 sales was £374,000.
Blofield suits families and commuters who drive, and want a village that still has its surgery and post office.
8. Reepham: 29.7 per 1,000
Reepham had 79 crimes among 2,659 residents, between one and 11 in any month, with five burglaries and nine anti-social behaviour reports.
The town is 12 miles north-west of Norwich and roughly halfway to Fakenham. The Market Place has the King’s Arms, a 17th-century coaching inn, and the Co-op is on Station Road. Reepham High School and College takes pupils from 11 to 18 and was rated Good in every area in May 2025. There is no railway, and the Sanders 43 bus runs five times a day to Norwich. The median of 41 sales was £300,000.
Reepham suits people who want a small market town with a school to 18, and who do not need to be in Norwich every day.
The eight in figures
| Parish | Population (2021 Census) | Crimes, August 2025 to July 2026 | Crimes per 1,000 residents | Burglaries | Anti-social behaviour reports |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| Hingham | 2,543 | 48 | 18.9 | 2 | 13 |
| Mulbarton | 4,020 | 77 | 19.2 | 5 | 19 |
| Dersingham | 4,753 | 96 | 20.2 | 1 | 19 |
| Taverham | 9,837 | 204 | 20.7 | 5 | 45 |
| Drayton | 5,393 | 128 | 23.7 | 11 | 29 |
| Wroxham | 1,694 | 44 | 26.0 | 1 | 4 |
| Blofield | 4,083 | 118 | 28.9 | 4 | 21 |
| Reepham | 2,659 | 79 | 29.7 | 5 | 9 |
Just outside the eight were Long Stratton (30.2) and Brundall (30.4). The highest rates among the places we checked were in Dereham (76.0), Diss (74.4) and Fakenham (71.9).
Higher than you might expect
Some towns often described as safe came out further down. Holt recorded 256 crimes, 63.8 per 1,000 residents, although only one of them was a burglary. Wymondham recorded 970 crimes, 55.5 per 1,000, after we left out 310 records that police.uk places at the police station, where Norfolk Constabulary has its headquarters on Falconers Chase; it had 10 burglaries. Wells-next-the-Sea recorded 55.3 per 1,000, a rate measured against residents only in a town where second homes and holiday lets were 34.8% of homes in March 2022. Harleston (39.0), Aylsham (38.1) and Poringland (36.3) were all below the county-wide rate but outside the eight.
Norfolk districts compared
| District | Crimes per 1,000 people | Residential burglaries per 1,000 households | Places on this list |
|---|---|---|---|
| Broadland | 34.8 | 1.9 | Taverham, Drayton, Wroxham, Blofield, Reepham |
| South Norfolk | 41.7 | 2.7 | Hingham, Mulbarton |
| North Norfolk | 42.0 | 1.3 | None |
| Breckland | 49.1 | 2.0 | None |
| King’s Lynn & West Norfolk | 57.3 | 2.7 | Dersingham |
| Great Yarmouth | 96.1 | 6.0 | None |
| Norwich | 108.9 | 4.4 | None |
| Norfolk | 61.5 | 3.0 | |
| England and Wales | 84.7 | 6.2 |
Figures are for the year ending March 2026, from the ONS police force area data tables, and exclude fraud. North Norfolk had the lowest residential burglary rate in the county. Great Yarmouth had the highest, at almost double the Norfolk figure.
Choosing between them
If you work in Norwich, the choice is among Taverham, Drayton, Mulbarton and Blofield, and it comes down to schools and buses: Taverham for a secondary with a sixth form in the village, Mulbarton for the common and a route to Hethersett Academy, Drayton for the shops, Blofield for the A47. Hingham and Reepham are for buyers who do not need to be in the city every day. Wroxham is the only one with a railway station, and the dearest. Dersingham is the choice in the west of the county.
Our Norwich area guide covers the commuter belt, and the Norfolk market towns ranking has more on Reepham and on Holt and Aylsham. For budgets, see our cheapest places to live in Norfolk and what £200k, £350k and £500k buys in a Norfolk village.
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How we produced this guide
Town and village crime figures are police.uk street-level crimes for August 2025 to July 2026, counted inside each parish boundary (ONS December 2021 parish boundaries) and divided by the parish population at the 2021 Census, which we summed from ONS output areas. Anti-social behaviour reports are counted separately and not included in the rate. For Wymondham we left out the 310 records police.uk maps to the police station. District, county and national figures are from the ONS police force area data tables for the year ending March 2026. House prices are HM Land Registry Price Paid Data, standard sales in the 12 months to June 2026, taken from our town guides; school ratings are from Ofsted. See our methodology page for source links.
Frequently asked questions
What is the safest place to live in Norfolk?
Of the 38 towns and large villages we checked, Hingham had the lowest recorded crime per resident in the 12 months to July 2026: 48 crimes, or 18.9 per 1,000 people. Mulbarton, Dersingham and Taverham were close behind. At district level, Broadland had the lowest rate in Norfolk in the year ending March 2026.
Is Norfolk a safe county to live in?
By national standards, yes. Norfolk recorded 61.5 crimes per 1,000 people in the year ending March 2026, against 84.7 for England and Wales, the seventh-lowest rate of 42 police force areas. Norwich and Great Yarmouth are the two districts above the national rate.
Which Norfolk towns have the lowest burglary rates?
Dersingham, Wroxham and Holt each recorded one burglary between August 2025 and July 2026, and Hingham two. At district level, North Norfolk had the lowest residential burglary rate in the county, 1.3 per 1,000 households.
Where is the safest place to retire in Norfolk?
Hingham has the lowest crime rate we found and a GP surgery in the town, but relies on buses for Norwich. Dersingham has a health centre and a bus every 30 minutes to the Queen Elizabeth Hospital in King’s Lynn. If you want a railway station, Wroxham is on the Bittern Line; North Walsham, further up the line, had a rate of 60.8 crimes per 1,000 residents.
Data sources: police.uk, ONS, HM Land Registry, Ofsted. Period covered: police.uk crime data August 2025 to July 2026; ONS recorded crime year ending March 2026. Author: Helen Marsh, Schools and Families Editor.
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