Robbery, theft and violence down in Camden following enhanced partnership action
- Deputy Mayor for Policing and Crime joins councillors and local neighbourhood policing team on patrol
- Latest stats show robbery in Camden is down 19.5 per cent, theft from person down by 11 per cent and violence with injury has also fallen.
Enhanced partnership work is helping to drive down robbery, theft and violence in Camden.
Latest statistics show robbery is down 19.5 per cent, theft from person and vehicle crime offences are down by 11 per cent, and violence with injury has also fallen by more than eight per cent in the borough.
The improvements made in the 12 months to October 2025 are attributed to more effective partnership work between community representatives and Camden Council, the Met Police and Mayor’s Office for Policing and Crime and London’s Violence Reduction Unit, who have worked collectively to identify crime hotspots and patterns of offending.
Since the start of April to 12 November 2025 theft of personal items in Camden was down 31.6 per cent (4,171 fewer offences) with personal robbery also down 30.7 per cent (638 offences) in the same period.
Joint initiatives such as dedicated Town Centre Police Teams, Business Improvement District collaborations and multi-agency forums have played a key role in reducing offences and improving safety across high-crime wards like Holborn and Covent Garden, Bloomsbury, and Camden Town. This joint working has been taking place alongside targeted and plain clothes operations by local neighbourhood officers.
Today, London’s Deputy Mayor for Policing and Crime Kaya Comer-Schwartz joined Council Leader Richard Olszewski, Councillor Pat Callagan, Assembly Member Anne Clarke, local neighbourhood police officers on a community safety patrol from Seven Dials to Tottenham Court Road.
They discussed challenges facing the borough around anti-social behaviour and rough sleeping and the coordinated responses needed to address these from Camden Council, community partners and the police with the onset of colder, darker winter evenings.
Record £1.16 billion funding from the Mayor of London is strengthening this local visible neighbourhood policing presence across our city and thanks to the hard work of the police, London’s Violence Reduction Unit and partners, overall crime continues to fall in the capital.
The number of homicides in London in the first nine months (1st January to 30th September) of 2025 was the lowest in the first nine months of any year since monthly records began in 2003. Across the capital the number of young people being injured with a knife is down by 26 per cent, homicides are down by 17 per cent, gun crime with lethal barrel discharges us down 43 per cent and burglary is down 27 per cent since 2016.
Deputy Mayor for Policing and Crime, Kaya Comer-Schwartz, said: “I was really pleased to join community representatives, Camden Council and local neighbourhood officers in the heart of Camden and learn more about the significant reductions in crime with robbery, theft and violence achieved in the borough.
“These results are down to stronger partnership working - I’ve seen firsthand today how officers and the council are out and about meeting communities, speaking with local people and business owners and addressing their concerns.
“It's clear there are still challenges ahead but greater collaboration is the way forward and we will continue to support, listen and work closely with the Met, local authorities and community partners to build a safer London for all.”
Superintendent Matt Cox, the Met’s neighbourhood policing lead for Camden, said: "Working together is key to how we tackle the issues that matter most to Londoners. By working closely with Camden Council and community partners, we are committed to reducing crime and anti-social behaviour in Seven Dials and Camden Town.
"Joint patrols and targeted operations have helped drive down robbery and theft significantly, and today’s visit is about building on that success. Together, we can focus our resources where they make the greatest difference and keep our communities safe."
Councillor Pat Callaghan, Cabinet Member for Safer Communities, said: “We want Camden to be a safe place for everyone, but sadly we hear too often that people don’t always feel this way. We’re committed to tackling robbery, violence, and anti-social behaviour on our streets and will continue to work closely with our community partners to share intelligence and listen to residents’ concerns about their local area. Our Community Safety Enforcement Officers patrol the borough to provide visible reassurance in known hotspot areas, supporting the police to catch and deter offenders, and keep residents safe.”
Assembly Member Anne Clarke said: “Camden’s progress driving down robbery, theft and violence shows exactly what can be achieved when City Hall, the council, the Met, local organisations and residents all pull in the same direction. These results are not accidental. They are the product of genuine partnership, shared priorities and a relentless focus on keeping people safe."
Notes to editors
Camden crime stats:
12 months to October 2025 compared to 12 months to October 2024:
- 19.5% reduction in Personal Robbery (compared to -15.4% in the MPS area).
- 11.0% reduction in Theft from the Person (compared to -6.1% across the MPS).
- 10.1% reduction in Vehicle Offences, driven by a decrease in both Theft from a Vehicle (-8.5%) and Theft or Taking of a Vehicle offences (-13.9%). A similar reduction was seen across the MPS (-14.2% total vehicle offences).
- 8.5% reduction in Violence with Injury. A similar reduction was seen across the MPS (-8.5%).
Between 1 April 2025 and 12 November 2025:
Theft of personal items in Camden was down 31.6 per cent (4,171 offences)
Personal robbery in Camden was down 30.7 per cent (638 offences)
London wide crime stats:
Crimes which have fallen since May 2016:
· Violence with Injury (down 13%).
· Homicide (down 25%), 30 fewer offences.
· Burglary (down 28%) – with reductions in both residential burglary (-24%) and business burglary (-35%).
· Gun Crime Lethal Barrel Discharge (down 45%) 115 fewer offences.
(MOPAC analysis of MPS recorded crime – 12-month period to August 2025 as compared to 12-month period to May 2016.)
Latest ONS figures show that overall, the violent crime with injury rate is lower in London than in the rest of England and Wales.
In the twelve months to March 2025, there were 26.40 recorded violence against the person offences per 1,000 population in the Met area, which is below the national average of 31.88 per 1,000 population.
Londoners are, on average, less likely to be a victim of a violence with injury offence than across the rest of England and Wales.
Crime stats factsheet update (September 2025)
Thanks to the hard work of Met officers, London’s Violence Reduction Unit, MOPAC, local authorities and partners, violence with injury in London is down 13 per cent. Homicide, burglary and gun crime are also down and there have been significant improvements made in the last few months tackling robbery and theft.
Homicides in the capital are also at a five-year low, with London’s rate lower than most north European and international cities such as Paris, Brussels, Berlin, and Madrid.
MOPAC analysis of MPS recorded crime – 12-month period to August 2025 as compared to 12-month period to May 2016.
- Violence with Injury (down 13%), 9,774 fewer offences.
- Homicide (down 21%), 25 fewer offences.
- Burglary (down 28%)
- Gun Crime Lethal Barrel Discharge (down 45%) 116 fewer offences.
- Knife Used to Injure (down 5%), a reduction of 195 offences.
MOPAC analysis of MPS recorded crime – comparing Q2 2025/26 with Q2 2024/25
- Personal robbery has fallen by 16%.
- Homicide has fallen by 18% (-6 offences).
- Total Knife Crime has fallen by 17%.
- Knife Used to Injure has fallen by 12%
Office for National Statistics – twelve months to June 2025
- There was a 3% reduction in Violence Against the Person offences recorded by the MPS.
- Londoners are less likely (26.3 offences per 1,000 population) to be a victim of violent crime than across the rest of England & Wales (31.5 offences per 1,000 population).
- There was a 14% reduction in Violence with Injury offences recorded by the MPS.
- Londoners are less likely (7.1 offences per 1,000 population) to be a victim of violence with injury than across the rest of England & Wales (8.3 offences per 1000 population).
MOPAC analysis of MPS Homicide data
- The number of homicides in the capital in the first nine months (1st January to 30th September) of 2025 is the lowest in the first nine months of any year since monthly records began in 2003.
- Last year London recorded the lowest number of homicides of under-25s for more than two decades and the lowest number of teenage homicides since 2012.
Homicide
Police recorded crime is a robust indicator of the number of homicides committed in a city. The following table provides the Homicide rate per million residents for 2023.
In 2023, the Homicide rate in London was almost seven times lower than in Los Angeles and four times lower than in New York. It is also lower than in Berlin.1