Crap Towns / Blackburn / Deliberate fires

How many fires get started on purpose in Blackburn?

There were 13.5 deliberate fires per 10,000 people a year in Blackburn from April 2023 to March 2026, 2.4 times the typical town's 5.7. The most common were bins and rubbish set on fire, at 9.6. In 2025/26 it was 17.1, up from 8.9 in 2023/24.

**Over time**
Period	Here	Typical town
2023/24	8.9	5.2
2024/25	14.6	5.4
2025/26	17.1	6.4

**What was set alight**
Fire	Here	Typical town
Bins and rubbish set on fire	9.6	1.9
Other outdoor fires	2.4	1.5
Grass, woods and crops set on fire	1.4	1.7

**Nearby towns**
Town	Distance	Fires per 10,000 people a year
Church	6.3 km	36.6
Clayton-le-Moors	7.5 km	28.1
Oswaldtwistle	5.6 km	22.7
Rishton	5.0 km	22.1
Accrington	8.1 km	18.9
Blackburn	–	13.5
Darwen	5.6 km	12.6
Haslingden	12.0 km	10.1
Bamber Bridge	12.4 km	8.2
Great Harwood	6.8 km	8.2
Longridge	12.3 km	5.8
The typical town	–	5.7