Crap Towns / Bolton / Deliberate fires

How many fires get started on purpose in Bolton?

There were 21.5 deliberate fires per 10,000 people a year in Bolton from April 2023 to March 2026, 3.8 times the typical town's 5.7. The most common were bins and rubbish set on fire, at 18.0. In 2025/26 it was 23.7, up from 19.8 in 2023/24.

**Over time**
Period	Here	Typical town
2023/24	19.8	5.2
2024/25	20.9	5.4
2025/26	23.7	6.4

**What was set alight**
Fire	Here	Typical town
Bins and rubbish set on fire	18.0	1.9
Grass, woods and crops set on fire	2.3	1.7
Other outdoor fires	1.2	1.5

**Nearby towns**
Town	Distance	Fires per 10,000 people a year
Little Hulton	6.8 km	47.0
Farnworth	4.9 km	30.9
Little Lever	5.1 km	21.7
Bolton	–	21.5
Radcliffe	7.9 km	19.3
Kearsley	6.5 km	18.9
Walkden	8.1 km	18.4
Atherton	7.7 km	15.5
Westhoughton	7.5 km	11.2
Horwich	7.3 km	10.0
Ramsbottom	8.7 km	4.5
The typical town	–	5.7