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.

Is the rest of the country like this now too?
We're just outside Birmingham and it really doesn't feel good here either. Over the last year or so it's just started to feel a bit scary, even in nice areas that we visit. The amount of anti social behaviour is terrifying, car and bike racing, drug taking very openly, all sorts outside our house. Have just recently started seeing gangs of men around our immediate which isn't something that happened a couple of years ago. No police anywhere, which is what I think part of the problem is. There has been a lot in the news about police cuts and shortages and it just all adds to the atmosphere that people think they can get away with stuff. We're moving as soon as we can, partly this stuff, partly traffic and various things. Can't afford anywhere else here so we're going to escape somewhere smaller.

I've been in London for 15 years and would say it's entirely dependant on the area of the city. Living fairly central, south of the River, it seems fairly safe. However, when you walk a bit further down, it can feel slightly unsafe.

Like with anything, it seems to have peaks and drops. I remember there being quite a lot of gangland activity being reported when I first arrived in London. Then it calmed down. Now we're hearing more about acids attacks and shootings. Like with any big city, there's always going to be some level of crime. As Raspberry88 mentioned, it's a feeling that being echoed throughout the country at the moment.

I spent all my life growing up in some very wealthy parts of London but hated being surrounded by buildings. Hampstead Heath was my playground as a child and I spent as much time running about freely with my brothers as I possible could but it didn't come near to what I have now. I moved to a quite little village in the New Forest 2 years ago to escape the dirty noisy and dangerous streets of London and can now finally say I am truly happy...no kids just me and my dog lol

I love London, I've lived here all my life and feel safe. Of course you need to have street smarts but thats true of any city. I remember as a teenager my male friends being punched in the street, mugged, and running away from gangs of other boys. It happened a lot.

Crime levels have not gone up over the last 50 years - they have gone down. Gang crime and moped muggings have gone up this year but they are not higher than historic levels.

I’ve been in and out and around London for about five years. The same areas feel significantly less safe than they did five years ago. The area around Highgate/Hampstead feels the same but east London (where I spend a lot of time) doesn’t feel great anymore. I used to feel perfectly safe there, now I rush in and out. Kings cross area seems to have improved though.

We had the same growing up bouledeneige but the difference now is that there are knives, guns and acid readily available. The dynamic has changed for the worst and you feel it if you have teenage children. We are moving out to the suburbs - best of all worlds - 30 mins to Charing X but no knife/moped/gang crime that we know of.

Cops are now nudging the scrotes on stolen mopeds off using the bonnet of their 5 Series patrol cars though the knife crime is a worry and Mayor Khan is doing precious little about it apart from blaming who was Mayor before, or the Home Office for less police to deal with the issue.

Islington is getting as nasty as Harlesden and one of those areas you just go in the daytime. These stabbings seem to punctuate the news quite alot but I hope the awful weather will keep the 'mandem' indoors and stop the attacks. Most of it is linked to 'Drill Music'

Gentrification and raising the house prices, in turn pricing the riff raff out may help. I lived in Hackney for years with no drama, so I think it's only the more rough and ready areas like Newham where this is more of an issue.

Outside London, it's just a different type of crime that occurs, so no area is truly safe

I’m close to Finsbury Park area too and have found it to feel more unsafe, especially in the past year. Moped thefts every week, I have drug dealers walking down my street and my car got broken into the other night :( thinking of moving out of the area soon!