Safest Areas in Cheshire, Lancashire and Merseyside 2026: Where Recorded Crime Is Lowest
The North West areas with the lowest recorded crime per resident in the year to August 2026, the lowest in every borough and district, and cheaper options.
The lowest recorded crime in the North West is mostly where you’d expect: rural Cheshire, the Lancashire countryside and the villages between Liverpool and Preston. But one Liverpool suburb makes the top five, and plenty of lower-crime places sell for £250,000 or less.
This ranking covers Cheshire, Lancashire and Merseyside, the parts of the North West where every police force published a full year of crime records. It leaves out Greater Manchester and Cumbria, for reasons explained below. Every area links to its full report.
The quick answer
- Sandstone North East in Cheshire West and Chester had the lowest rate: 16.6 recorded crimes per 1,000 residents in the year to August 2026, leaving out anti-social behaviour.
- Mossley Hill in south Liverpool is 5th, at 20.5. It’s the only part of a city in the top 10.
- Longton & Hutton West in South Ribble and Rural South in West Lancashire are the cheapest of the top 10, with typical prices of £262,500 and £272,500.
- Across the three areas, police recorded 83.3 crimes per 1,000 residents on the same basis, level with England’s 83.4.
- The lowest-crime area in every borough and district is below that rate, from Sandstone North East to Burnley’s lowest, Cliviger with Worsthorne, at 44.3.
The 10 areas with the lowest recorded crime
The chart ranks areas with at least 2,000 residents by recorded crime per 1,000 residents in the 12 months to August 2026, leaving out anti-social behaviour. The top 10 are separated by about 5 crimes per 1,000, so the order within it matters much less than the gap to the overall rate of 83.3.
Lowest recorded crime in Cheshire, Lancashire and Merseyside, per 1,000 residents (excluding anti-social behaviour), September 2025 to August 2026
| neighbourhood | crime_ex_asb_per_1k |
|---|---|
| Sandstone North East | 17 |
| Upper Lune Valley | 18 |
| Parkgate | 20 |
| Wilmslow East | 20 |
| Mossley Hill | 21 |
| Mobberley | 21 |
| University | 21 |
| Aughton & Holborn | 21 |
| Rural South | 21 |
| Longton & Hutton West | 22 |
| Rank | Area | Local authority | Crime excl. ASB per 1,000 | Crime and ASB per 1,000 | Typical price |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| 1 | Sandstone North East | Cheshire West and Chester | 16.6 | 17.6 | £449,000 |
| 2 | Upper Lune Valley | Lancaster | 18.0 | 23.5 | £340,000 |
| 3 | Parkgate | Cheshire West and Chester | 19.7 | 24.2 | £285,500 |
| 4 | Wilmslow East | Cheshire East | 20.2 | 24.0 | £710,250 |
| 5 | Mossley Hill | Liverpool | 20.5 | 24.1 | £458,000 |
| 6 | Mobberley | Cheshire East | 20.6 | 22.5 | £414,250 |
| 7 | University | Lancaster | 20.7 | 23.6 | – |
| 8 | Aughton & Holborn | West Lancashire | 20.9 | 26.8 | £355,000 |
| 9 | Rural South | West Lancashire | 21.2 | 26.7 | £272,500 |
| 10 | Longton & Hutton West | South Ribble | 21.7 | 27.3 | £262,500 |
Sandstone North East, Upper Lune Valley and Mossley Hill are small, and only a handful of homes sold in each over the year, so their prices can swing a long way. Too few homes sold in Lancaster’s University ward to give a price at all. Parkgate, Aughton & Holborn and Longton & Hutton West are the larger places on the list, with enough sales for a steadier figure.
This is a useful starting point, but the best match depends on your budget, commute and what you value most.
The lowest-crime area in each borough and district
If your job, family or school places tie you to one part of the region, these tables give the area with the lowest recorded crime in each local authority, with its position among the 525 areas ranked.
Merseyside
| Local authority | Lowest-crime area | Rank of 525 | Crime excl. ASB per 1,000 | Typical price |
|---|---|---|---|---|
| Liverpool | Mossley Hill | 5 | 20.5 | £458,000 |
| Wirral | Greasby, Frankby and Irby | 15 | 23.0 | £290,000 |
| Knowsley | Swanside | 16 | 23.1 | £218,250 |
| Sefton | Park | 37 | 27.3 | £248,750 |
| St Helens | Rainford | 68 | 31.7 | £275,000 |
Liverpool has two areas in the top 11: Mossley Hill and Calderstones, both south-east of the city centre and less than a mile apart. The city as a whole is far more mixed, from those two to the city centre wards. The Liverpool family guide and the Liverpool area hub cover every part of it, and the Anfield report shows how one area with a reputation compares.
Cheshire, Warrington and Halton
| Local authority | Lowest-crime area | Rank of 525 | Crime excl. ASB per 1,000 | Typical price |
|---|---|---|---|---|
| Cheshire West and Chester | Sandstone North East | 1 | 16.6 | £449,000 |
| Cheshire East | Wilmslow East | 4 | 20.2 | £710,250 |
| Halton | Beechwood & Heath | 17 | 23.2 | £240,000 |
| Warrington | Great Sankey North & Whittle Hall | 27 | 25.4 | £303,000 |
Wilmslow East has the highest typical price of any area in this ranking. Halton’s Beechwood & Heath, 17th, costs about a third as much.
Lancashire, Blackburn with Darwen and Blackpool
| Local authority | Lowest-crime area | Rank of 525 | Crime excl. ASB per 1,000 | Typical price |
|---|---|---|---|---|
| Lancaster | Upper Lune Valley | 2 | 18.0 | £340,000 |
| West Lancashire | Aughton & Holborn | 8 | 20.9 | £355,000 |
| South Ribble | Longton & Hutton West | 10 | 21.7 | £262,500 |
| Ribble Valley | Dilworth | 12 | 22.0 | £222,475 |
| Fylde | Park | 19 | 23.4 | £347,500 |
| Chorley | Euxton South East | 24 | 25.1 | £235,000 |
| Wyre | Carleton | 28 | 25.4 | £217,000 |
| Rossendale | Helmshore | 34 | 26.6 | £250,000 |
| Pendle | Fence & Higham | 77 | 33.4 | £241,000 |
| Blackburn with Darwen | Billinge & Beardwood | 85 | 34.3 | £230,000 |
| Blackpool | Stanley | 101 | 36.7 | £190,000 |
| Hyndburn | Baxenden | 126 | 39.9 | £200,000 |
| Preston | Greyfriars | 128 | 40.3 | £255,000 |
| Burnley | Cliviger with Worsthorne | 163 | 44.3 | £249,950 |
The lowest-crime areas in Pendle, Blackburn with Darwen, Blackpool, Hyndburn, Preston and Burnley sit further down the ranking, but all are still well below the overall rate of 83.3.
Lower crime without the highest prices
If £400,000-plus is out of reach, these 16 areas are all among the 60 with the lowest recorded crime and had a typical sale price of £250,000 or less.
| Area | Local authority | Rank of 525 | Crime excl. ASB per 1,000 | Typical price |
|---|---|---|---|---|
| Dilworth | Ribble Valley | 12 | 22.0 | £222,475 |
| Swanside | Knowsley | 16 | 23.1 | £218,250 |
| Beechwood & Heath | Halton | 17 | 23.2 | £240,000 |
| Edisford & Low Moor | Ribble Valley | 21 | 23.7 | £210,000 |
| John O’Gaunt | Lancaster | 23 | 24.1 | £151,500 |
| Euxton South East | Chorley | 24 | 25.1 | £235,000 |
| Carleton | Wyre | 28 | 25.4 | £217,000 |
| Bowerham | Lancaster | 29 | 25.9 | £245,000 |
| Walton-le-Dale East | South Ribble | 31 | 26.1 | £218,000 |
| Helmshore | Rossendale | 34 | 26.6 | £250,000 |
| Park | Sefton | 37 | 27.3 | £248,750 |
| West Derby Muirhead | Liverpool | 41 | 27.8 | £250,000 |
| Strawberry | Cheshire West and Chester | 45 | 28.4 | £238,000 |
| North Meols & Hesketh Bank | West Lancashire | 46 | 28.5 | £235,000 |
| Hoole | South Ribble | 49 | 29.0 | £235,000 |
| Sandbach Ettiley Heath and Wheelock | Cheshire East | 54 | 29.7 | £240,000 |
Lancaster’s John O’Gaunt has by far the lowest typical price on the list. Swanside in Knowsley and Park in Sefton are the largest places here, each with around 10,000 residents or more. A lower typical price can reflect smaller or older homes as much as a cheaper area, so compare what is actually for sale at your budget.
A low recorded-crime rate can earn an area a place on your longlist. The home, the routes you’d use and what you can afford decide whether it belongs on your shortlist.
Why Greater Manchester and Cumbria are left out
Greater Manchester. Greater Manchester Police doesn’t publish its crime records to police.uk, the national source we use for every area in England and Wales. There is no figure to rank for any of its 218 neighbourhoods, so we don’t show one. The Manchester family guide covers the city on prices, schools and transport instead.
Cumbria. Cumbria Constabulary didn’t publish September 2025. A 12-month total would undercount, which would make Cumbria look safer than it is, so its areas are left out until a complete year is available.
You can check the figures, or the reason there isn’t one, for any area with our crime rate search.
How to read this ranking
Anti-social behaviour is left out on purpose. The three forces record it very differently: about 6 incidents per 1,000 residents in Cheshire, 8 in Merseyside and 16 in Lancashire. Including it would push Lancashire areas down the ranking for a recording reason. The figure including it, as shown on each area report, is in the top-10 table.
Rates are per resident, and crimes are recorded where they happen. Town centres, retail parks and stations add incidents but few residents, so central areas look worse than the homes around them. The same effect helps the quietest places: the lowest rates belong to areas with few shops, stations or nightlife.
Small places move more. The ranking leaves out the 24 areas with fewer than 2,000 residents. Even above that, a village of 2,500 people can move several places on a handful of incidents.
The total hides the mix. Two areas with similar rates can have very different crime types. Each report shows the breakdown by type against its local authority and England, and our guide to reading crime figures beyond an area’s reputation explains what to look for.
What to check before you move
- Look at the street, not the ward. police.uk maps recorded crime month by month, so you can see whether incidents cluster near the home you’re considering.
- Walk your real routes at the times you’d use them. The school run, the walk from the station and the route to the shops tell you more than a ward total.
- Ask what the quiet costs you. Many of the lowest-crime areas depend on a car for school, work and shopping. Check the journeys before you count the low rate as a win.
- Compare at least two alternatives. Use the tables above to find a nearby area with a similar rate and a different price, then compare their reports.
FAQs
Where is the safest place to live in the North West?
Of the areas we can rank, Sandstone North East in Cheshire West and Chester had the lowest recorded crime in the year to August 2026: 16.6 per 1,000 residents, excluding anti-social behaviour. Upper Lune Valley in Lancaster and Parkgate in Cheshire West and Chester came next. Greater Manchester and Cumbria are not included, because complete figures aren’t available.
What is the safest area in Liverpool?
Mossley Hill had the lowest recorded crime of Liverpool’s areas, at 20.5 per 1,000 excluding anti-social behaviour, 5th of the 525 areas ranked. Calderstones, less than a mile away, was 11th. Their typical prices were £458,000 and £497,500.
Where is the safest place to live in Lancashire?
Upper Lune Valley in Lancaster had the lowest rate in Lancashire, at 18.0 per 1,000, followed by Lancaster’s University ward and Aughton & Holborn in West Lancashire. Longton & Hutton West in South Ribble was the cheapest of the top 10 overall, at £262,500.
Are the safest areas in the North West expensive?
Many are: five of the top 10 had a typical price above £350,000. But 16 of the 60 lowest-crime areas sold for £250,000 or less, including Dilworth in Ribble Valley, Swanside in Knowsley and Beechwood & Heath in Halton.
Methodology & Sources
We ranked the 525 neighbourhoods with at least 2,000 residents in the Cheshire, Lancashire and Merseyside police areas by police.uk recorded crime, excluding anti-social behaviour, per 1,000 residents over the 12 months from September 2025 to August 2026. Neighbourhoods follow electoral wards, and residents are from the 2021 Census. The 24 areas with fewer than 2,000 residents were left out because a few incidents can move their rate a long way. Greater Manchester (218 neighbourhoods, no records on police.uk) and Cumbria (86 neighbourhoods, September 2025 missing) were left out.
The overall rate of 83.3 per 1,000 covers every neighbourhood in the three police areas on the same measure; England’s 83.4 covers areas whose force published all 12 months. Force rates for anti-social behaviour are across each force’s whole area. Prices are the median of standard HM Land Registry sales over the same 12 months; the most recent months may be incomplete because of registration delays, and areas with fewer than 10 sales have no price. Each area’s report shows recorded crime including anti-social behaviour, as in the top-10 table.
Recorded crime reflects what is reported to and recorded by the police, not every incident or how safe a street feels. Use the ranking to decide where to look, then check the streets, routes and homes themselves.