Hertfordshire named among UK’s safest places to live

The likes of St Albans and Harpenden are among the safest places to live in the UK thanks to their low crime rates.

Hertfordshire is the eighth safest area, according to new analysis of crime stats recorded during 2019.

Property buyers Good Move studied Office for National Statistics data to establish which areas had the worst crime rates, ranking each of them across a number of categories, including sexual offences, robbery, and violence.

Gloucestershire was named the safest place to live, followed by North Yorkshire, Wiltshire and Surrey.

At the opposite end of the spectrum was West Yorkshire, which was named the riskiest place to call home, followed by Cleveland, Humberside and Northumbria.

Good Move also surveyed 2,000 UK homeowners, and found that over half (58 per cent) feel safe from crime in their current area. Overall, male respondents said they felt safer, as did those between the ages of 25-34.

Nima Ghasri, director at Good Move, said: “It’s interesting to see just how much crime takes place in certain areas across the UK.

“When moving to a new area, whilst factors such as good schools and closeness to family and friends are important, people must consider just how safe the area is too.

“Hopefully, our research will help people looking to move to a new area to decide on the best location.”