2025 list: Worst postcodes for serious youth crime offences in NSW and greater Sydney revealed
New figures have pinpointed the worst hot spots in NSW for youth crime. Here’s the list of which suburbs recorded the highest rates of offending.
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New crime data has pinpointed the worst suburbs in NSW for rates of serious youth crime as the state records an increase in some juvenile crimes including sexual offences, home break and enters and retail theft.
Regional towns and inner Sydney suburbs have recorded the state’s highest rates of serious youth offending with the northwest NSW town of Brewarrina topping the list as the worst location for offences.
Assaults, robberies, and home break and enters were among the 13,964 serious youth crime offences recorded in 2024, according to an analysis of data published by the NSW Bureau of Crime Statistics this month.
On a proportion of population, the regional towns of Brewarrina and Bourke had the overall highest numbers of offences in NSW while Sydney’s CBD and Bondi Junction recorded the highest rates of youth offending in the greater Sydney region.
The figures come amid increased focus on youth crime in NSW, particularly in regional parts of the state.
The crime data show juvenile offences which have record increases over the past 12 months include sexual offences, home break and enters and retail theft offences.
NSW Police Minister Yasmin Catley – who was quizzed on the issue in parliament this month – said “several hundred” repeat offenders were believed to be responsible for 90 per cent of the youth crime across regional NSW.
Ms Catley said efforts by NSW Police to curb escalating youth crime rates include the launch of an operation targeting offending with a focus on regional areas including Moree, Tamworth, Dubbo and Orange.
NSW opposition police spokesman Paul Toole, however, wants more action taken to address youth crime in NSW including incentives to attract and retain police in regional areas.
Mr Toole claimed “crime was out of control in many communities”.
“We’ve got people too scared to leave their homes, car thefts and break-and-enters at an all time high and we’re struggling to attract the police that regional areas are crying out for,” Mr Toole said.
In response to the rising youth crime rates, the NSW Government has introduced new legislation including youth bail amendments and “post and boast” laws targeting offenders who post videos of crimes online to gain social media likes, resulting in 27 people aged under 16 charged with offences.
Below is a breakdown of the postcodes with the highest rates of serious crime in 2024. The serious offences used to formulate the data included homicide, assault, robbery, sexual offences, malicious damage, drug offences, break and enters, stealing offences, car theft, theft from dwelling, theft from retail stores and arson.
GREATER SYDNEY
SYDNEY CBD
Sydney’s CBD recorded the highest per capita rate of serious youth crime in greater Sydney with 347 incidents recorded in 2024. The postcode – which has a population of 27,936 – recorded 97 assaults, 96 retail theft offences, 48 robberies, and 29 malicious damage offences. Other offences involving juvenile offenders included 14 car thefts and 38 drug offences – the highest number in the state.
BONDI JUNCTION
Home to 13,509 people, the Bondi Junction postcode recorded 76 serious youth crime incidents including 23 assaults and six malicious damage offences. The postcode also had one of the state’s highest number of retail theft incidents by juveniles with 43 incidents recorded in 2024.
MIRANDA
The Miranda postcode of 2228 recorded 104 serious youth crime incidents in 2024 including 25 assaults, 10 malicious damage incidents and five motor vehicle thefts. The figures also included 13 drug offences involving youth offenders and 46 retail theft offences.
GLEBE
The inner city suburb of Glebe recorded 66 youth offences over the period including 27 steal from retail offences, and 22 assaults. The postcode, which captures 16,641 residents, also clocked up six motor vehicle thefts and six malicious damage offences.
MOUNT DRUITT
Mount Druitt had western Sydney’s highest youth crime rate with 195 serious offences recorded over the 12 month period. The list of offences included 97 assaults, 35 malicious damage incidents, and 16 drug offences.
WARRIEWOOD
Warriewood on the northern beaches recorded 25 youth crime incidents in 2024 including 15 retail theft offences and five assaults. The postcode of 8739 people also recorded two robberies involving one break and enter and one vehicle theft.
EDMONDSON PARK
The growing southwest suburb of Edmondson Park has recorded one of the fastest growing rates of youth crime in Sydney as a rate of population with 35 serious youth crime offences in 2024. The incidents included 15 assaults, 10 of malicious damage and seven break and enters from homes.
PARRAMATTA
There were 100 serious youth crime incidents recorded in the Parramatta postcode in 2024 including 37 assaults and 15 robberies – one involving a firearm. Other offences recorded in the postcode included 11 drug offences, 22 steal from retail offences and 10 malicious damage offences.
CAMPBELLTOWN
The Macarthur region postcode of 2560 recorded 229 serious youth crime offences last year including 118 assaults – the highest overall number in NSW – and 48 incidents of malicious damage. There were also eight motor vehicle thefts, eight break and enter offences, eight drug offences and 27 retail theft incidents recorded over the 12 month period.
REDFERN
The Redfern postcode recorded 36 serious youth crime offences over the period including 19 assaults. The postcode – which captures a population of 13,072 people – also recorded six drug offences and six retail theft offences.
MATRAVILLE
Home to 33,767 people, the Matraville postcode – which also takes in Eastgardens and Little Bay – had 87 serious youth offences recorded over the 12 month period including 12 motor vehicle thefts involving juvenile offenders. The offences also included 18 break and enters from homes, 25 assaults and 10 steal from retail offences.
HURSTVILLE
Hurstville had 79 youth crime offences in 2024 including 17 assaults, 12 drug offences and 40 retail theft offences. The postcode – which has a population of 33,761 people – also had five robbery offences involving youth offenders.
MARRICKVILLE
The Marrickville postcode of 2204 recorded 59 serious youth crime offences last year including 10 cars stolen by juvenile offenders. The postcode – home to 26,567 people – also had 11 assaults, seven malicious damage offences and 29 retail theft offences.
CHATSWOOD
Chatswood clocked up 60 serious youth crime offences last year including 15 assaults and 13 break and enters from homes. Other incidents included five motor vehicle thefts and five malicious damage offences. The postcode is home to 27,078 people.
DOONSIDE
Doonside recorded 51 youth crime incidents in 2024 including five homicides, 16 assaults and 15 robberies. The postcode – home to 23,384 people – also had 10 incidents of malicious damage and car theft.
REGIONAL NSW
Home to just 1079 people, the northwest NSW town of Brewarrina had the highest per capita rate of juvenile offending last year with 50 serious offences including 14 assaults, 13 malicious damage offences, 12 break and enters and six motor vehicle thefts.
BOURKE
Bourke recorded the state’s second highest per capita juvenile crime rate with 83 serious incidents of serious offending in 2024. The postcode of 2389 residents recorded 20 break and enters from homes involving juvenile offenders, 15 assaults, nine motor vehicle thefts, and five incidents of malicious damage.
NEWCASTLE WEST
Newcastle West had 42 serious youth incidents recorded in 2024 in a postcode home to a population of 1411 people. The incidents included 14 assaults and 24 retail theft offences.
WALGETT
Walgett was another youth crime hotspot with 43 serious incidents recorded in 2024. The crime statistics show the offences included 19 assaults and nine incidents of malicious damage. The postcode has a population of 2149 people.
MOREE
Moree rounded out the top five regional postcodes with the highest rate of youth offending with second with 192 serious youth offences in a postcode with a population of 9708 people. The figures included 44 assaults, 40 break and enters from homes, 21 malicious damage offences, 38 car thefts, six drug offences.
ALSO RANKED
Other regional NSW hotspots for youth offending included Collarenebri, Buronga, Wilcannia, Burgooney, Lightning Ridge which rounded out the top 10 list of recorded incidents as a rate of population.
Multiple larger regional towns also recorded high rates of offending including Kempsey, home to 23,166 people, which had 218 serious offences and Dubbo which clocked up 327 offences in the postcode of 44,963 people.
Other regional centres with high rates of youth crime included Inverell, Tamworth, Taree, Orange, Casino, Forster, Newcastle, Albury and Cowra.
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