Crime & safety
Victoria's crime statistics come from the Crime Statistics Agency (CSA), which publishes offences recorded by Victoria Police for every local government area. Below are the offences recorded in Ararat Rural City in the 12 months from July 2025 to June 2026, for 11 offence groups, each with its rate per 100,000 people next to the rate for Victoria as a whole. The 'vs Victoria' column is Ararat's rate divided by the Victorian rate: 1.0 means the same as Victoria, below 1.0 is lower, above 1.0 is higher. Ararat Rural City has about 11,700 residents, so a few offences move a rate noticeably — read the rates with that in mind.
New to these terms? Read them in plain English
- Rate per 100,000
- Crime counts adjusted for population, so different-sized places can be compared.
- Recorded incident
- An incident reported to police — not a proven charge or conviction.
Safety at a glance
- Reporting period
- July 2025 to June 2026 (12 months)The CSA's latest release. The next one, for the year ending September 2026, is due on 17 December 2026.
- Why the rates swing
- One offence moves a rate by about 8.5 per 100,000With about 11,700 residents (about 11,800 in the population the CSA uses for its rates), a single recorded offence shifts a rate noticeably, so year-to-year movements should be read with care. That is why we give no overall 'below / above Victoria' summary for this council.
- Largest count
- Property damage — 139 offences1,176.0 per 100,000, compared with 654.3 for Victoria (1.80×).
- Recorded, not convicted
- Offences recorded by Victoria PoliceA recorded offence is not a charge, prosecution or conviction, and counts move with reporting and policing activity as well as with offending.
| Offence | Offences recorded | vs Victoria | ||
|---|---|---|---|---|
| Family violence assault | 83 | 702.2 | 368.0 | 1.91× |
| Non-family-violence assault | 65 | 549.9 | 318.6 | 1.73× |
| Sexual offences | 68 | 575.3 | 242.9 | 2.37× |
| Robbery | 2 | 16.9 | 41.0 | 0.41× |
| Residential burglary (break & enter, dwelling) | 58 | 490.7 | 347.3 | 1.41× |
| Non-residential burglary (break & enter, non-dwelling) | 32 | 270.7 | 206.4 | 1.31× |
| Motor vehicle theft | 35 | 296.1 | 434.9 | 0.68× |
| Steal from a motor vehicle | 87 | 736.1 | 1,074.8 | 0.68× |
| Steal from a retail store | 85 | 719.1 | 599.2 | 1.20× |
| Other theft (incl. bicycles) | 123 | 1,040.6 | 920.0 | 1.13× |
| Property damage (incl. graffiti) | 139 | 1,176.0 | 654.3 | 1.80× |
Offences recorded in Ararat Rural City, July 2025 to June 2026, with rates per 100,000 population next to the Victorian rate. Source: Crime Statistics Agency (CSA), LGA Recorded Offences (Table 02) and Victorian Recorded Offences (Table 01), year ending June 2026. 'vs Victoria' = Ararat rate ÷ Victorian rate.
These are offences recorded by Victoria Police, not convictions, and with about 11,700 residents a single offence moves a rate by about 8.5 per 100,000 — so a single year says little on its own. We compare Ararat with Victoria only; other states count crime differently. The CSA calculates rates with the Victorian Government's population estimates ('Victoria in Future'), not the ABS figure on the profile page. How CSA offence codes map to the rows above: family violence assault = A211 + A231; non-family-violence assault = A212 + A232; sexual offences = A30; robbery = A51 + A52; residential burglary = B311 + B321; non-residential burglary = B312 + B322; motor vehicle theft = B41; steal from a motor vehicle = B42; steal from a retail store = B43; other theft = B44 + B49; property damage = B21 + B22 + B29. Data © Crime Statistics Agency (CSA), CC BY 4.0.
Sources — check it yourself
- Crime Statistics Agency (CSA) — LGA Recorded Offences, year ending June 2026 (XLSX, Table 02) · Jul 2025 to Jun 2026
- Crime Statistics Agency (CSA) — Victorian Recorded Offences, year ending June 2026 (XLSX, Table 01) · Jul 2025 to Jun 2026
- Crime Statistics Agency (CSA) — Latest Victorian crime data · Updated quarterly
- Crime Statistics Agency (CSA) — Release calendar · Sep 2026
Figures are current as at the dates shown and may change — always confirm with the linked source. See the notice at the bottom of the page for full details and how to report a correction.