Is anyone starting to feel unsafe in London?

[longestlurkerever]

I've always loved London and defended London child rearing but a spate of moped thefts, a grisly murder on my doorstep and the background terror threat is starting to take its toll on my stress levels and I've found myself googling safe places to live in the UK. Is it in my imagination or does it feel more threatening than it used to? Part of me feels like it is related to the general instability in the world and maybe the rest of the UK feels the same.

Lived in London virtually all my adult life and find that I am feeling less safe than I used to - but with my mother hat on, I think I'm noticing more potential threats to my DC's safety than I would have done pre-children.

Have had a few 'funny' incidents recently that I've never experienced before. Waiting for DC2 to get off the bus after school, I've had people begging for money to get back home on the Tube (and the same guy approached me twice within a week, seemingly having no memory that he'd asked me before - I never forget a face though!), asking to use my mobile to "phone a friend", asking me to top up their Oyster Card...And the other day when we were out as a family (on foot) in broad daylight, two boys on a moped slowed right down and looked as if they were 'casing' my DS's phone/headphones (which weren't high-end enough, I don't think, for them to risk an attempted theft with DH and I there).

I have always been 'aware' of the potential for danger and consider myself 'careful', keeping an eye on my bag etc...when I'm walking back home on my own after evenings out (but without being neurotic about it). BUT recently, I've started feeling the need to wear a cross-body bag and just generally be more acutely alert, and I say this as someone who is not naturally a doom and gloom merchant!

I often work in Clerkenwell, I live in a small town a couple of hours away. Feel much safer in London than in my own town. DH and I have both been assaulted by strangers on our own naice street, burgled once, car interfered with numerous times. In London there are more people around and I think that's what makes it feel safer.

YANBU. Plus I agree having DCs changes your perspective on crime massively.

I’ve lived in London all my life and my area (Notting Hill/North Kensington) is a lot lot safer than it was in the 70s or 80s - when drug dealers and gangs openly ruled the streets.

I am old enough to remember the IRA campaigns of the 70s and in hindsight they were truly terrifying. I think social media is to blame for the hysteria over the more recent attacks.

Yes moped mugging & acid attacks are a concern. Not enough to make me feel unsafe on a day to day basis and I feel safer in London than rural Cumbria where my Mum lives.

I think social media is to blame for the hysteria over the more recent attacks. - think you're right on that one. I'm sure my recent uneasiness has been 'fuelled' by reading lots of local social media group posts.

Agree with the social media thing. A lot of it is incorrect and not in context anywY, fuelling fear in people.

Definitely agree with you about social media harriet

4 murders on NYE in London.
I’ve never known London as unsafe as it is atm.
Terrorists, random acid attacks, rising knife crime, moped robberies in broad daylight,
I’m surprised anyone wants to live here tbh.

I came up to uni in the middle of the IRA bombings, had an attempted mugging in the 80s,was burgled in 80s lived in some seriously seedy parts where I used to skitter home from the Tube very nervously that are now very smart and where my daughters go to late clubs happily. Increased traffic is something I feel nervous of - wouldn't ride a bike where once I would but no, I don't feel unsafer from crime than I did then. My provincial home town does feel edgier, though, especially at night.

I lived in Tottenham in the 80s, which always felt sketchy, but I've been in Walthamstow for 30 years now and I love it. Never felt unsafe there at all.

There have recently been a spate of muggings near me with the windows of cars being smashed with a hammer by men on mopeds. Yes I am now aware and think twice about wearing jewellery whilst driving.

30+years in London -never felt,unsafe

Still feeling quite down about this. A woman was raped in our park last week. Yesterday my next door neighbour's lad was nearly knocked down by a scumbag on a stolen moped in a police chase - they'd stabbed the victim to steal it - and there were sniffer dogs in my garden and helicopters overhead. My friend who lives locally had someone jump into her garden and run into her kitchen saying he was about to be stabbed. I really didn't used to feel like we were living in bandit country. Is the rest of the country like this now too?

no I don't not feel safe but I always look around and look at people. Just be weary and don't answer the door to people you aren't expecting

That sounds awful but I think it very much depends where you live. I live in a leafy part of South London that hasn't got a great reputation but have never had any trouble although a couple of miles away there is trouble. I find the expensive, further out areas like Richmond, Greenwich and paced like Kingston feel the safest. Or the suburbs like Chislehurst.

The Met Chief Cressida Dick says that funding cuts have contributed to a rise in violent crime in London

longestlurkerever I agree that London has generally gotten worse lately, this new mayor doesn't really seem to be doing anything about it. Moped crime for example has grown exponentially in the last few years...as a Londoner it does worry me.

Your area around Finsbury Park (e.g. Islington North, Corbyn's seat) is particularly bad though. Highgate Hill & Holloway Road are the two worst roads for moped muggings and they're near you.

No, I don’t feel scared. Lived in London all my life (45+ years). I’m certainly less used to the crowds now that I’ve stopped working in central London but I don’t feel scared. Maybe when I start back working in town I will. And I live somewhere where knife and gang crime is an issue but I feel quite removed from that. Awful that it’s happening, of course, but as it doesn’t affect me I don’t personally feel scared.

But I’ve lived here through endless IRA bomb scares and the Kings Cross fire etc.

Moped crime is down over 40% because once the Police identified the issues they did something about it. I'm in Camden, we get updates from the Police on Nextdoor.

Correction. Just reading the local paper and moped crime is down 82.5%. That is in Camden and Islington which were the areas with the highest number of incidents

London is huge. Depends whereabouts you live in London. There are some very 'safe' places and others where you wouldn't go out alone at night. Like most cities I imagine.

Yes! This is one of the reasons that I moved out of London. We live in High Wycombe now and feel so much happier.

Is the rest of the country like this now too?

No, definitely not! I've never heard of stuff like that happening round here (I live in Herts). We moved out of London, because we were worried about raising our DC there and I'm so glad we did as things are much worse now with moped muggings, acid attacks, terrorism, stabbings/knife crime, gang violence on the streets, etc. OP, if you don't feel safe - move. Unless you move to a rough part of another big city you're bound to land up somewhere that feels (and is), safer. Don't be afraid to leave London. There really IS life elsewhere!

I love in S London and travel into C London and visit friends all over. My kids roam all over on their Zip cards.

Horrible tings happen, but then we are a city of millions and millions. Every day, every single day, I have at least one positive interaction with a stranger, queuing for an ATM, or both looking at the map when a tube line is down or whatever.

Every day I have a positive interaction with someone in our local community. Chat to a neighbour, get an invite to Macmillan Coffee Morning, have a hello and a few words with a teen I recognise from Primary.

I am aware of tube staff managing rush hour with good humour, people in parks being chee

Sorry posted too soon.
What I mean to say is, you can be ‘mindful ‘ of the many micro-good-things and build up a picture of a great city!