Crap Towns / Portsmouth / Deliberate fires

How many fires get started on purpose in Portsmouth?

There were 6.0 deliberate fires per 10,000 people a year in Portsmouth from April 2023 to March 2026, 5% higher than the typical town's 5.7. The most common were other outdoor fires, at 2.5. In 2025/26 it was 5.2, down from 7.5 in 2023/24.

**Over time**
Period	Here	Typical town
2023/24	7.5	5.2
2024/25	5.3	5.4
2025/26	5.2	6.4

**What was set alight**
Fire	Here	Typical town
Other outdoor fires	2.5	1.5
Bins and rubbish set on fire	1.8	1.9
Grass, woods and crops set on fire	1.7	1.7

**Nearby towns**
Town	Distance	Fires per 10,000 people a year
Havant	7.3 km	11.4
Gosport	6.0 km	10.4
South Hayling	7.9 km	8.9
Denmead	8.9 km	8.3
Fareham	9.2 km	6.1
Ryde	12.7 km	6.0
Portsmouth	–	6.0
Horndean	10.7 km	3.8
Lee-on-the-Solent	9.9 km	3.8
Waterlooville	6.9 km	3.3
Emsworth	10.0 km	1.1
The typical town	–	5.7