The 3 safest (and most dangerous) places to live in London

London doesn’t have a brilliant reputation when it comes to crime. With 106.4 offences per 1,000 people, it has one of the highest crime rates in Britain, and if you’re anywhere near the city centre, make sure you’re clinging to your phone for dear life. Despite that, new research has found that the capital city is home to both the safest places in the UK and the least safe. 

Security training platform Get Licensed has ranked the UK’s local authorities according to how safe they are. It measured safety according to factors like crime rate per 1,000 people, year-on-year change in crime severity, reoffending rates, the number of CCTV cameras in public spaces and the number of licensed security personnel. 

Let’s start with the good news. South London neighbourhood Sutton was named London’s and the UK’s safest area to live, with an overall safety score of 8.09 out of 10. You can read more about why it’s the country’s safest place here. 

Kingston-upon-Thames is apparently London’s second safest place to be (and the UK’s third safest). Get Licensed gave it an overall score of 7.81 out of 10 and highlighted that crime in the area has gone down by nearly 10 percent year-on-year. It’s annual crime rate currently sits at 67.1 offences per 1,000 people. 

The nearby Richmond-upon-Thames emerged as London’s third safest spot with a safety score of 7.55. It has an annual crime rate of just 61.7 per 1,000 people, though it has seen a small year-on-year increase on 0.91 percent. 

At the other end of the spectrum, the borough of Camden was declared London’s (and the UK’s) most dangerous place to live. It has a crime rate more than triple that of Sutton (194.8 per 1,000 people) and was given an overall safety score of just 0.87 out of 10. 

Islington was close behind in second place with an annual crime rate of 140.8 offences per 1,000 people and an overall safety score of 1.88 out of 10. Then in fourth place nationally and third in London was Westminster. The central London borough has an annual crime rate that dwarfs everywhere else on the list – a whopping 423.3 offences per 1,000 people. It seems to have avoided the number one most dangerous spot thanks to a year-on-year crime decline of 5 percent. 

London’s top 3 safest places to live, according to Get Licensed 

1. Sutton
2. Kingston-upon-Thames 
3. Richmond-upon-Thames

London’s 3 least safe places to live, according to Get Licensed 

1. Camden
2. Islington
3. Westminster

The most crime ridden tube stations in London have been revealed for 2025. 

An interactive map shows where you are most likely to get your phone stolen in London. 

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