Revealed: the cost of serious violence in the Thames Valley
Serious violence across the Thames Valley cost the local economy over £125 million in 2021, according to research by the Thames Valley Violence Reduction Unit.
Significant costs incurred included the impact of homicides reported in the Thames Valley, which alone cost the local economy over £60 million pounds, including lost economic output, the cost of police investigations and the cost to the NHS.
Whilst serious violence has fallen across the Thames Valley since 2018, the cost of serious violence has remained high yet stable. Between 2015 and 2021, serious violence is estimated to have cost £773 million pounds across the Thames Valley.
Milton Keynes, Buckinghamshire and Reading Community Safety Partnerships have all seen high costs from serious violence, with a notable increase in costs in Reading CSP since 2019.
View data at CSP level
| CSP | Cost 2015 | Cost 2016 | Cost 2017 | Cost 2018 | Cost 2019 | Cost 2020 | Cost 2021 |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| Bracknell Forest | £0.79m | £1.14m | £2.21m | £6.19m | £7.47m | £2.64m | £5.56m |
| Buckinghamshire | £17.99m | £18.72m | £20.95m | £13.62m | £14.87m | £19.99m | £21.79m |
| Cherwell | £6.64m | £3.71m | £11.84m | £8.78m | £3.92m | £4.44m | £3.00m |
| Milton Keynes | £11.73m | £11.98m | £19.54m | £24.94m | £34.20m | £16.86m | £22.94m |
| Oxford | £7.82m | £14.17m | £14.42m | £11.55m | £19.73m | £5.48m | £9.62m |
| Reading | £8.48m | £6.06m | £9.45m | £11.84m | £9.95m | £23.76m | £30.71m |
| Slough | £12.83m | £7.40m | £16.34m | £15.49m | £20.40m | £12.97m | £7.53m |
| South Oxfordshire | £8.58m | £1.58m | £1.93m | £1.62m | £1.74m | £10.25m | £2.18m |
| Vale of White Horse | £8.61m | £1.41m | £5.19m | £1.62m | £1.51m | £6.09m | £5.50m |
| West Berkshire | £1.82m | £2.51m | £9.93m | £3.04m | £6.34m | £6.76m | £6.06m |
| West Oxfordshire | £0.93m | £1.36m | £1.35m | £1.80m | £2.17m | £0.95m | £0.85m |
| Windsor and Maidenhead | £2.35m | £3.66m | £5.48m | £4.54m | £4.53m | £4.11m | £2.54m |
| Wokingham | £0.83m | £1.07m | £6.22m | £6.09m | £3.19m | £2.55m | £6.89m |
The cost of serious violence has a direct impact on public sector organisations working in the Thames Valley. During 2021, serious violence is estimated to have cost local health services £3.9 million, policing £5.5 million, and the CJS systems in the Thames Valley £25 million. Whilst costs to the NHS and policing have fallen roughly in line with reductions in the overall volume of serious violence, increases in recorded homicide during 2021 have increased costs to the CJS.
What does the cost of serious violence look like in my area?
We have used the costings for serious violence alongside crime data for 2015-2021 to calculate the cost of serious violence for every middle super output area (MSOA) in the Thames Valley, not including the cost of serious violence from homicide. Check out the cost in your area using the interactive map below:
View ten highest MSOA details
| MSOA Name | CSP | Total Cost |
|---|---|---|
| Reading Central | Reading | £5.98m |
| Central Milton Keynes & Newlands | Milton Keynes | £4.39m |
| Oxford Central | Oxford | £3.29m |
| Chalvey | Slough | £2.43m |
| Central Slough & Upton Court | Slough | £2.60m |
| Town Centre & Marlow Hill | Buckinghamshire | £2.27m |
| Banbury Grimsbury | Cherwell | £2.18m |
| Stoke Road & Wexham Road | Slough | £2.02m |
| Eaglestone & Fishermead | Milton Keynes | £2.01m |
| Aylesbury Central | Buckinghamshire | £1.97m |
| Denbigh | Milton Keynes | £1.85m |
How the cost of violence can be calculated
To calculate the costs of serious violence in the Thames Valley, we have used research produced by the Home Office, which estimated the cost of crime for a number of high-level crime categories. These costings were adjusted for inflation, so that they were correct as of 2021 prices. Finally, for all estimates of cost, the total numbers of offences recorded were multiplied by a multiplier created by the original research, which aims to correct for the difference in recorded crime compared to crime levels estimated through surveys of crime. The total figures are an estimate for the total cost of crime. More information on the research can be found in the original Home Office report.