Crap Towns / Houghton Regis / Deliberate fires

How many fires get started on purpose in Houghton Regis?

There were 15.1 deliberate fires per 10,000 people a year in Houghton Regis from April 2023 to March 2026, 2.6 times the typical town's 5.7. The most common were bins and rubbish set on fire, at 6.5. In 2025/26 it was 19.6, up from 13.4 in 2023/24.

**Over time**
Period	Here	Typical town
2023/24	13.4	5.2
2024/25	12.3	5.4
2025/26	19.6	6.4

**What was set alight**
Fire	Here	Typical town
Bins and rubbish set on fire	6.5	1.9
Other outdoor fires	5.0	1.5
Grass, woods and crops set on fire	3.6	1.7

**Nearby towns**
Town	Distance	Fires per 10,000 people a year
Houghton Regis	–	15.1
Leighton Buzzard	9.7 km	10.2
Bletchley	17.6 km	8.1
Tring	15.4 km	7.0
Dunstable	2.5 km	6.2
Redbourn	14.7 km	5.8
Luton	6.9 km	5.3
Berkhamsted	16.6 km	4.9
Flitwick	11.0 km	3.4
Ampthill	13.2 km	2.9
Harpenden	15.8 km	2.3
The typical town	–	5.7