Crap Towns / Durham / Deliberate fires

How many fires get started on purpose in Durham?

There were 14.4 deliberate fires per 10,000 people a year in Durham from April 2023 to March 2026, 2.5 times the typical town's 5.7. The most common were grass, woods and crops set on fire, at 7.0. In 2025/26 it was 18.7, up from 14.4 in 2023/24.

**Over time**
Period	Here	Typical town
2023/24	14.4	5.2
2024/25	10.1	5.4
2025/26	18.7	6.4

**What was set alight**
Fire	Here	Typical town
Grass, woods and crops set on fire	7.0	1.7
Bins and rubbish set on fire	6.1	1.9
Other outdoor fires	1.3	1.5

**Nearby towns**
Town	Distance	Fires per 10,000 people a year
Hetton-le-Hole	8.5 km	71.2
Houghton-le-Spring	8.9 km	61.0
Sacriston	5.3 km	45.3
Shiney Row and Penshaw	10.8 km	42.1
Fence Houses	8.2 km	35.9
Spennymoor	8.7 km	35.0
Chester-le-Street	8.1 km	34.5
Ushaw Moor and Bearpark	4.1 km	33.0
Brandon	4.6 km	32.1
Pelton and Ouston	10.7 km	30.0
Durham	–	14.4
The typical town	–	5.7