Crap Towns / Brightlingsea / Deliberate fires

How many fires get started on purpose in Brightlingsea?

There were 1.9 deliberate fires per 10,000 people a year in Brightlingsea from April 2023 to March 2026, 67% lower than the typical town's 5.7. The most common were bins and rubbish set on fire, at 1.2. In 2025/26 it was 3.5, up from 2.3 in 2023/24.

**Over time**
Period	Here	Typical town
2023/24	2.3	5.2
2024/25	0.0	5.4
2025/26	3.5	6.4

**What was set alight**
Fire	Here	Typical town
Bins and rubbish set on fire	1.2	1.9
Grass, woods and crops set on fire	0.4	1.7
Other outdoor fires	0.4	1.5

**Nearby towns**
Town	Distance	Fires per 10,000 people a year
Jaywick	7.1 km	13.1
Clacton-on-Sea	8.4 km	12.7
Berechurch	10.1 km	6.7
Walton-on-the-Naze	16.7 km	6.2
Colchester	12.2 km	4.3
Harwich	20.8 km	3.5
Brightlingsea	–	1.9
Tiptree	19.4 km	1.8
West Mersea	7.9 km	1.4
Kirby Cross	14.1 km	1.0
Wivenhoe	7.1 km	0.6
The typical town	–	5.7