Leeds neighbourhood second only to London hotspot as Christmas burglary capital

The West End – London’s entertainment heartland and home of Oxford Street, Regent Street and Trafalgar Square – has been revealed as the UK’s festive burglary hotspot.

Last year the area reported 175 burglaries in the Christmas period, almost double its nearest competitor – the neighbourhood of Little London and Woodhouse in Leeds, which saw 101 break ins.

The top five was rounded out by St. James’s in London with 68 burglaries, followed by Bargate in Southampton with 62 and Sheffield city centre with 56.

Bordesley and Highgate in Birmingham (53), Monument in Newcastle upon Tyne (52), Doncaster town centre (45), Castleford Central and Glasshoughton in Wakefield (45) and Bristol city centre (41) completed the top 10.

Broader urban trend

The statistics come from an analysis of police crimes data from the winter of 2024, performed by home security firm Spy Alarms, which also revealed that alongside London, the cities of Birmingham, Leeds and Manchester proved to be the country’s Christmas crime hubs.

Overall, the report suggested that on average, UK neighbourhoods see approximately 2.6 burglaries across the November to January period, rising into the hundreds in the worst affected areas.

Spy Alarms suggested that the crime distribution reflected “broader urban trends, where dense housing, nightlife and commuter activity coincide with higher winter burglary risks”.

And with longer nights, unoccupied homes and often-visible valuables increasing crime rates, the firm suggested a set of measures to mitigate such risks, including installing alarms, using security lighting, hiding gifts, discretely disposing of expensive packaging and locking up windows and doors.