Office for National Statistics (ONS) data shows the number of murders increased in the region over the past year
West Midlands Police officers in Birmingham
Murders have risen across the West Midlands despite a significant drop in knife crime, new figures reveal.
New Office for National Statistics (ONS) data shows the number of killings increased in the region over the past year – even as offences involving blades fell sharply.
In the West Midlands Police area, 39 murders were recorded in 2025 – eight more than in 2024.
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The rise came amid a mixed national picture, with around half of police forces in England and Wales also seeing an increase in murders.
Over the same time period, knife crime in the West Midlands dropped notably by 15 per cent.
Officers recorded 3,946 knife offences in 2025, down from 4,642 the previous year.
It mirrored a wider trend with two-thirds of forces recording a year-on-year fall in knife crime.
Major forces including the Metropolitan Police and Greater Manchester Police reported significant reductions.
Full list of murder stats by police force
The list is arranged alphabetically.
From left to right: name of the police force, the number of recorded murders in 2025, the number (in brackets) recorded in 2024, and the numerical change year-on-year.
Avon & Somerset 5 (21), down 16Bedfordshire 6 (10), down 4British Transport Police 3 (11), down 8Cambridgeshire 14 (5), up 9Cheshire 4 (3), up 1City of London 0 (0), no changeCleveland 9 (8), up 1Cumbria 1 (6), down 5Derbyshire 12 (10), up 2Devon & Cornwall 14 (11), up 3Dorset 4 (3), up 1Durham 3 (3), no changeDyfed-Powys 6 (4), up 2Essex 6 (12), down 6Gloucestershire 9 (6), up 3Greater Manchester 19 (27), down 8Gwent 3 (3), no changeHampshire 17 (9), up 8Hertfordshire 8 (9), down 1Humberside 2 (4), down 2Kent 14 (15), down 1Lancashire 14 (12), up 2Leicestershire 8 (6), up 2Lincolnshire 5 (12), down 7Merseyside 9 (17), down 8Metropolitan Police 99 (112), down 13Norfolk 5 (8), down 3North Wales 4 (3), up 1North Yorkshire 2 (7), down 5Northamptonshire 8 (9), down 1Northumbria 9 (15), down 6Nottinghamshire 12 (9), up 3South Wales 22 (16), up 6South Yorkshire 9 (9), no changeStaffordshire 10 (11), down 1Suffolk 9 (4), up 5Surrey 5 (10), down 5Sussex 10 (6), up 4Thames Valley 13 (19), down 6Warwickshire 3 (5), down 2West Mercia 14 (9), up 5West Midlands 39 (31), up 8West Yorkshire 30 (21), up 9Wiltshire 5 (3), up 2
Full list of knife crime stats by police force
The list is arranged alphabetically. From left to right: the name of police force, the number of recorded incidents of knife crime in 2025, then number (in brackets) of recorded incidents in 2024, the numerical change year-on-year and the percentage change year-on-year.
Avon & Somerset 1,338 (1,636), down 298, -18.2%Bedfordshire 590 (606), down 16, -2.6%British Transport Police 341 (481), down 140, -29.1%Cambridgeshire 638 (592), up 46, +7.8%Cheshire 508 (576), down 68, -11.8%City of London 40 (68), down 28, -41.2%Cleveland 930 (869), up 61, +7.0%Cumbria 167 (169), down 2, -1.2%Derbyshire 746 (654), up 92, +14.1%Devon & Cornwall 884 (919), down 35 -3.8%Dorset 221 (293), down 72 -24.6%Durham 404 (397), up 7, +1.8%Dyfed-Powys 183 (166), up 17, +10.2%Essex 1,455 (1,504), down 49, -3.3%Gloucestershire 253 (279), down 26, -9.3%Greater Manchester 2,890 (3,476), down 586, -16.9%Gwent 348 (395), down 47, -11.9%Hampshire 940 (995), down 55, -5.5%Hertfordshire 647 (758), down 111, -14.6%Humberside 805 (786), up 19, +2.4%Kent 881 (888), down 7, -0.8%Lancashire 1,151 (1,359), down 208, -15.3%Leicestershire 715 (775), down 60, -7.7%Lincolnshire 417 (410), up 7, +1.7%Merseyside 1,189 (1,176), up 13, +1.1%Metropolitan Police 13,994 (16,785), down 2,791, -16.6%Norfolk 458 (466), down 8, -1.7%North Wales 283 (334), down 51, -15.3%North Yorkshire 330 (262), up 68, +26.0%Northamptonshire 566 (568), down 2, -0.4%Northumbria 1,168 (1,087), up 81, +7.5%Nottinghamshire 847 (804), up 43, +5.3%South Wales 668 (661), up 7, +1.1%South Yorkshire 1,438 (1,480), down 42, -2.8%Staffordshire 766 (787), down 21, -2.7%Suffolk 338 (292), up 46, +15.8%Surrey 441 (517), down 76, -14.7%Sussex 940 (1,107), down 167, -15.1%Thames Valley 941 (1,055), down 114, -10.8%Warwickshire 331 (298), up 33, +11.1%West Mercia 602 (680), down 78, -11.5%West Midlands 3,946 (4,642), down 696, -15.0%West Yorkshire 2,149 (2,256), down 107, -4.7%Wiltshire 264 (240), up 24, +10.0%
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