Without the headline crime cities of the rest of the country, it’s easy to think of Suffolk as almost immune to crime. Indeed, Suffolk is listed as being in the top 20 safest counties. So, is Constable country simply blissful rolling fields, or do we need to be aware of more? Awareness of crime in our local area helps us to understand the security measures we should take to protect ourselves and our businesses from the impact of crime.
Suffolk, broadly, is a safe county. However, what this doesn’t reveal is that crime is still a problem in our county. Each month there are typically well over 160 burglaries, over 260 incidents of shoplifting, and over 300 other types of theft. Our overall crime rate in 2021 was 63 crimes per 1000 people. While this is lower than the national average of 77.49, it’s still unacceptably high and worrying for the victims of the individual crimes. In September, there were 422 crimes in Bury St Edmunds in alone.
Suffolk crime statistics
Worryingly, the most notable trends centre on violent and sexual crime in Suffolk. Rightly, a lot of energy and resources are focusing on seeing improvements in this area. However, in the context of this, we shouldn’t overlook other crimes.
In the 3 years to September 2022, there were:
- 1,980 burglaries
- 5,148 incidents of criminal damage and arson
- 2,369 incidents of shoplifting
Bear in mind that these are the reported crimes. It is likely that far more crimes of this nature occurred which remain unreported. Most of Suffolk’s crime rates (by type of crime) remain fairly constant over the last four years. Even when things are reported as ‘safer’, the figures often remain broadly the same year on year.
As would be expected crime in our county’s towns such as Bury St Edmunds, Ipswich, Lowestoft, and Newmarket all experience more than 40% higher rates of crime than the rest of rural Suffolk as a whole. Higher populations unfortunately result in higher crime figures. However, being based in Bury St Edmunds, we are well placed to provide a reassuring service to businesses throughout Suffolk and Cambridgeshire and to act as a deterrent to both opportunistic and organised crime.
Protect your business from crime in Suffolk
Crime statistics should never make us panic. However, they do allow us insight into the difficulties our area faces. This allows us to make the best decisions to protect ourselves and, importantly, our property and businesses. We are not helpless in the face of crimes such as burglaries, and we can take steps to protect against them so that we don’t become part of the statistics.
At Abbey Security, we are proud to protect businesses and properties, and we offer a range of security services in Suffolk including static and manned guarding, mobile security patrols, keyholding and alarm response and physical penetration testing. We can help ensure that your buildings are safe and secure, crime is prevented, and that you and your business don’t become the next Suffolk victim of crime.
Find out more about how we can help by calling 01284 768832.
Posted on November 10, 2022