Crap Towns / Chester-le-Street / Deliberate fires

How many fires get started on purpose in Chester-le-Street?

There were 34.5 deliberate fires per 10,000 people a year in Chester-le-Street from April 2023 to March 2026, 6.1 times the typical town's 5.7. The most common were bins and rubbish set on fire, at 19.6. In 2025/26 it was 51.5, up from 17.2 in 2023/24.

**Over time**
Period	Here	Typical town
2023/24	17.2	5.2
2024/25	34.9	5.4
2025/26	51.5	6.4

**What was set alight**
Fire	Here	Typical town
Bins and rubbish set on fire	19.6	1.9
Grass, woods and crops set on fire	12.3	1.7
Other outdoor fires	2.7	1.5

**Nearby towns**
Town	Distance	Fires per 10,000 people a year
Stanley	7.4 km	72.3
Hetton-le-Hole	9.0 km	71.2
Houghton-le-Spring	6.9 km	61.0
Sacriston	5.1 km	45.3
Shiney Row and Penshaw	6.0 km	42.1
Washington	6.8 km	39.8
Fence Houses	5.1 km	35.9
Chester-le-Street	–	34.5
Pelton and Ouston	3.0 km	30.0
Birtley	4.8 km	28.6
Durham	8.1 km	14.4
The typical town	–	5.7