Residents in Mansfield have said they are "not surprised" after it was named the second most dangerous place in Nottinghamshire. According to recent police data, Mansfield Town Centre & Broomhill is just behind Nottingham City Centre & Trent Bridge for the highest crime rate for its population from February 2021 - January 2022.
The data threw up some worryingly high statistics such as 1039 cases of violence and sexual assault and 805 crimes of anti-social behaviour. The town has a crime rate of 361.2 people per 1,000 and is ranked the 64th most dangerous area in the UK.
Local residents have now shared their thoughts on living in or near one of the most dangerous towns in Nottinghamshire.
Retired 81-year-old, Terry Rate, said: "Well I don't know how to take that. You get the youngsters riding around sometimes and causing some trouble, I think drugs has something to do with it.
"I remember when I was younger, about 17 or 18, when I lived about a mile-and-a-half from the town, we'd get the first bus to the and usually go to the cinema and we wouldn't have any problems at all.
"I'll tell you that I try and keep up-to-date with what's happening in Mansfield and every week without fail there's at least one thing related to crime - every week. That's disgusting.
"I think it's all related to drugs. It's so easy for kids to get involved in drugs if they've got mates that are doing it and then it's a slippery slope after that. That drummer from the Foo Fighters, they say his heart was twice its normal size when he died, and he had been doing that his whole life. It's scary think about."
Kerri Benson, 48, who lives in Mansfield Woodhouse, said: "I'm not really surprised at all. It's just crime isn't it, there's a lot of it Mansfield and that's probably why it's been said to be one of the most dangerous places.
"Mansfield has just been going down hill for ages, really. There are so many shops that have shut down and the ones that are still here aren't nice.
"They shut shops like Debenhams years ago and it's just a dying a town now - it's awful. If a town doesn't have direction, like this one, then it's probably going to lead to more crime like we're seeing now.
"I wouldn't dream of coming into town late at night nowadays. I'm not shocked."
Worksop Cheapside, in Bassetlaw, had the third highest crime rate, (284 crimes per 1,000 people),which was partly driven by the highest rates of burglary in the county - 12 offences for every 1,000 residents. Nottinghamshire Live recently revealed the top 10 safest areas in the county - using the same data - which showed Keyworth North, Tollerton and Willoughby in Rushcliffe was the safest neighbourhood to live in.
Unlike other residents, 77-year-old retired resident, Dennis O'Neill was shocked to hear about Mansfield's high placement in the list. He said: "I'm very surprised. I've been living here for over 50 years and have never experienced any problems.
"I bring my grandchildren here and have never felt unsafe bringing them out, I'm happy with that. I can't believe it's second on that list.
"To be honest though I never come out later than 6pm because you never know what could happen - I try to stay away from the town centre at that time. Sometimes youngsters can get themselves into trouble I suppose but I don't feel unsafe here ever."
Top 10 most dangerous areas in Nottinghamshire down below:
Area name (taken from the House of Commons Library) // Number of crimes of anti-social behaviour, Feb 2021 to Jan 2022 // Bicycle theft // Burglary// Criminal damage and arson // Drug offences // Other crime // Other theft // Possession of weapons // Public order offences // Robbery // Shoplifting // Theft from the person // Vehicle crime // Violence and sexual offences // Total number of crimes // Crime rate per 1000 residents // Rank (of all neighbourhoods in England and Wales)
- City Centre & Trent Bridge // 1330 // 103 // 156 // 277 // 528 // 59 // 396 // 78 // 490 // 63 // 483 // 173 // 69 // 1404 // 5609 // 425.1 // 34
- Mansfield Town Centre & Broomhill // 805 // 26 // 98 // 281 // 245 // 64 // 178 // 47 // 284 // 25 // 632 // 41 // 66 // 1039 // 3831 // 361.2 // 64
- Worksop Cheapside // 450 // 30 // 91 // 209 // 52 // 46 // 146 // 17 // 140 // 25 // 240 // 10 // 103 // 520 // 2079 // 284.4 // 149
- Bulwell North // 548 // 26 // 42 // 141 // 44 // 38 // 122 // 11 // 134 // 12 // 400 // 20 // 58 // 492 // 2088 // 275.7 // 161
- Worksop Town & South // 406 // 21 // 71 // 135 // 46 // 40 // 84 // 14 // 120 // 9 // 452 // 7 // 81 // 415 // 1901 // 262.9 // 182
- St Ann's West // 870 // 41 // 89 // 220 // 253 // 48 // 269 // 51 // 263 // 43 // 484 // 94 // 106 // 964 // 3795 // 262.0 // 183
- Hyson Green // 760 // 18 // 67 // 175 // 91 // 60 // 154 // 20 // 155 // 28 // 113 // 22 // 90 // 565 // 2318 // 248.4 // 210
- Newgate & Carr Bank // 574 // 23 // 55 // 209 // 69 // 37 // 115 // 16 // 122 // 10 // 115 // 19 // 63 // 634 // 2061 // 246.8 // 217
- Arboretum, Forest & Trent University // 1142 // 27 // 102 // 176 // 139 // 67 // 227 // 40 // 163 // 46 // 9 // 81 // 94 // 841 // 3154 // 227.3 // 281
- Oak Tree & Ransom Wood // 364 // 12 // 49 // 210 // 21 // 34 // 78 // 15 // 78 // 3 // 34 // 12 // 39 // 425 // 1374 // 212.6 // 342
