First-Class in criminology: Uni crime hotspots revealed

London comes out on top in league table that shows most dangerous uni cities


A new report shows which universities suffer from the most crime, and the news isn’t good if you’re in London or the North.

Students in the Big Smoke can expect nearly four robberies or attacks per 1,000 residents, with some Northern unis experiencing almost three per 1,000.

Perhaps unsurprisingly, crime rates at unis in London are higher than in any other city in the UK, with the top 16 most crime-ridden campuses in the capital.

King’s College tops the table as the most dangerous in the UK, with crime rates at 3.79 for every thousand residents, while London’s lowest – Kingston – still comes in fairly high at 1.81.

With campuses near crime hotspots of Waterloo and London Bridge stations, students at King’s hardly stand a chance.

These guys could be mugging you come September

A King’s College spokesman said: “We regularly communicate the importance of personal safety to students.”

The highest rates outside of London come from Hull, closely followed by Manchester and Manchester Met.

Predictably, universities in large cities suffer more than those in rural areas. Aberystwyth in Wales has the lowest crime rate of any university in the UK with a meagre 0.47, closely followed by Durham at 0.75.

There is some small mercy as the findings, compiled by The Complete University Guide, do not specifically refer to crimes against students. They are a total of burglary, robbery and violent crime stats for the areas within three miles of university campuses.

If you’ve never been burgled, it looks a bit like this

However, crimes against students are disproportionately higher than crimes against other groups. One explanation for this is the growing ‘town vs gown’ problem in cities.

George Owers, a Labour councillor and PhD student in Cambridge has suggested the divide between students and the rest of the city may be creating a social gap.

He has called for students to engage in community projects to take them out of their “privileged silos” and integrate them into the community.

Owers said: “Our universities do not exist in isolation from the communities within which they are located, and, regrettably, crime is a constant presence.”

While forcing students to work with the community may not be the best way to unite the two factions, attempts to get students involved with their cities could help reduce the number of crimes directed at them.

Founder of the Complete University Guide, Bernard Kingston, said universities should do more to inform prospective students by providing details of crime figures.

Kingston said: “While universities, especially those in high crime areas, do much to advise students on precautions, many students, particularly those from overseas attracted by formidable academic reputations, are often not aware of the risks in the areas around their chosen institutions.”