Crime & safety
The authoritative source for crime in NSW is the Bureau of Crime Statistics and Research (BOCSAR), which publishes recorded incidents reported to or detected by NSW Police. Below are Gwydir's 12 major offences for the 12 months from April 2025 to March 2026 (the year ending March 2026), with each rate (per 100,000 people) placed next to the NSW rate. The 'vs NSW' column is Gwydir's rate divided by the NSW rate: 1.0 means the same as NSW, below 1.0 is lower than NSW, above 1.0 is higher. These are recorded incidents, not convictions.
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.
- Compared to NSW (×)
- How the local rate compares to the NSW average (1.0 = the same).
- Recorded incident
- An incident reported to police — not a proven charge or conviction.
- Major offence categories
- The high-level offence groups official rates are calculated for.
- Police Area Command / Police District
- The local NSW Police command responsible for an area.
- BOCSAR
- The official source of NSW recorded-crime data.
Safety at a glance
- Reporting period
- April 2025 to March 2026 (12 months)Latest BOCSAR recorded-crime release. Figures are recorded incidents, not convictions or charges.
- How Gwydir compares
- 6 of 12 major offences below the NSW rateBelow NSW: malicious damage (0.70×), steal from motor vehicle (0.62×), sexual assault (0.93×), sexual touching and other sexual offences (0.78×), robbery (0 recorded incidents) and steal from retail store (0 recorded incidents).
- Highest relative rates
- Break & enter dwelling 2.12×, domestic violence related assault 2.08×, motor vehicle theft 1.43×Domestic violence related assault is also the highest-volume offence locally, with 46 recorded incidents.
- What a small population does to a rate
- At a population of 4,893, one recorded incident is about 20 per 100,000This cuts both ways. It means a handful of extra incidents can push a rate well above the NSW average, and a handful fewer can push it well below — the two offences showing 0.00× here are zero recorded incidents, not a low rate. Read the incident counts first and the rates second.
- Reporting rates differ by offence
- Not every offence is reported at the same rateBOCSAR counts incidents that come to police attention. Willingness to report varies by offence type, which particularly affects domestic violence and sexual offences, so counts for those categories should not be read as a complete count of what occurs.
- Local policing
- New England Police DistrictBingara Police Station (26 Maitland Street) and Warialda Police Station (Stephen Street) sit within the New England Police District, part of the NSW Police Western Region. Neither station is open 24 hours. Confirm exact boundaries on the BOCSAR mapping tool.
| Offence | Incidents | |||
|---|---|---|---|---|
| Domestic violence related assault | 46 | 940.1 | 451.9 | 2.08× |
| Non-domestic violence related assault | 23 | 470.1 | 401.8 | 1.17× |
| Other stealing offences | 23 | 470.1 | 463.1 | 1.02× |
| Break & enter (dwelling) | 22 | 449.6 | 212.3 | 2.12× |
| Malicious damage to property | 19 | 388.3 | 554.7 | 0.70× |
| Motor vehicle theft | 12 | 245.2 | 171.2 | 1.43× |
| Steal from motor vehicle | 9 | 183.9 | 295.5 | 0.62× |
| Sexual assault | 7 | 143.1 | 154.4 | 0.93× |
| Break & enter (non-dwelling) | 6 | 122.6 | 91.8 | 1.34× |
| Sexual touching & other sexual offences | 4 | 81.7 | 104.1 | 0.78× |
| Robbery | 0 | 0.0 | 20.6 | 0.00× |
| Steal from retail store | 0 | 0.0 | 372.5 | 0.00× |
Major offences in Gwydir vs the NSW rate, per 100,000 population, for the 12 months from April 2025 to March 2026. Source: BOCSAR LGA & NSW recorded-crime tables. 'vs NSW' = Gwydir rate ÷ NSW rate.
BOCSAR calculates rates only for these 'major offences', so high-volume justice offences (e.g. breach of bail or AVO) aren't rate-compared here. These are recorded incidents, not convictions, and counts move with population and with reporting. Gwydir's population is small enough that a single incident is worth roughly 20 per 100,000, which makes year-to-year rate movements large in both directions; the counts in the second column are the more stable number to read. We present the counts and rates without characterising cause, and draw no conclusion about the council, the police or the community. For the latest figures, trends and other offence types, use BOCSAR's tools below.
Sources — check it yourself
- BOCSAR — Gwydir LGA crime table (XLSX) · Apr 2025 to Mar 2026
- BOCSAR — NSW recorded-crime table (XLSX) · Apr 2025 to Mar 2026
- BOCSAR — Crime statistics by LGA · Updated quarterly
- BOCSAR — Crime Mapping Tool (compare to NSW)
- NSW Police Force — Bingara Police Station (New England Police District)
- NSW Police Force — Warialda Police Station (New England Police District)
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.