The Victorian postcodes with the highest criminal offence rates at schools revealed

Almost 6000 crimes were committed at schools last year, new data has revealed. From sex offences to robberies, see which suburbs were hotspots for schoolyard crime.

Almost 6000 offences were committed at schools in 2024, with nearly 120 offences committed per week around the state.

There were more than 500 sexual assaults at Victorian schools and grounds in the past year, with Ballarat schools the highest in the state for such shocking crimes, new figures show.

Ballarat schools in the 3350 postcode were the site of 50 sexual offences such as rape, intention to rape, indecent assault and possession of child abuse material in the past three years, including 30 instances in 2024.

The Crime Statistics Agency data, obtained exclusively by the Herald Sun, shows Cranbourne schools were the site of 35 sexual offences between 2022 and 2024 and schools in Wendouree were the site of 30 sexual offences in the same period.

Both private and public schools were the location of such crimes last year, including the sharing of fake nude images at Bacchus Marsh Grammar in June and the rating of female classmates by male students at Yarra Valley Grammar in May.

The horrifying sexual crimes were among almost 6000 offences committed at schools in 2024, with nearly 120 offences committed per week around the state – the highest in a decade.

The statistics also show there were 177 instances of deception, which includes giving misleading information or falsifying documents, in the Craigieburn postcode of 3064 in 2024, followed by 22 in Broadmeadows and six in Brunswick.

Assault crimes, which include aggravated assault, intentionally causing serious injury and reckless injury, were highest in the Hoppers Crossing and Cranbourne postcodes, with 20 instances each, followed by 17 in Point Cook and 16 in Melton schools and grounds.

Last year’s offences include a serious schoolyard fight at St Bede’s College in Mentone in March and a vicious fight that left some students covered in blood in May at The Grange P-12 College in Hoppers Crossing.

Police were called to Bacchus Marsh Grammar last year after the sharing of fake nude images.

A stabbing at Staughton College left a 16-year-old boy with non-life threatening injuries.

Last year, theft was highest in the Parkville postcode of 3052, with 68 robberies in and around school grounds, followed by 48 in Point Cook and 46 in central Melbourne.

Many of these are property thefts, and take place after hours.

Police were called to investigate the theft of wires and electrical cables at Sunshine College and the theft of water metres at Catholic primary schools in Maribyrnong in January last year.

Weapons and explosives offences were most common in the Langwarrin postcode of 3910, with nine instances, and five each in Hoppers Crossing and Mooroolbark schools.

Such offences also occurred at Greater Shepparton Secondary College when a student brought a knife to school and in Melton South’s Staughton College, where a stabbing left a 16-year-old boy with non-life threatening injuries.

Drug use and possession was highest in Bairnsdale, with eight offences, and property damage was highest in the Caulfield East and Cranbourne postcodes, with nine instances in schools in each area, followed by eight in Belmont schools.

Stalking and harassment was highest in the Lakes Entrance postcode of 3909 and Cranbourne’s 3977, with four instances in each school area.

A Victoria Police spokesman said burglaries, thefts, and assaults were among the most common offences committed at school locations.

“While the crime data does not reference times of offending, anecdotally most burglaries and thefts take place outside school hours,” he said.

“Most assaults at schools are non-family violence common assaults.

“Common assaults are minor assaults with no injuries sustained – consistent with a schoolyard push and shove.”

Opposition education spokeswoman Jess Wilson said “declining educational outcomes will never be addressed while Victorian schools are increasingly disruptive and unsafe places for students and teachers”.

“The safety of students, teachers and staff on school grounds is paramount and the continued rise of serious criminal offending within schools under Labor is deeply concerning,” she said.

A Department of Education spokesperson said: “Victorian schools have zero tolerance for violence and take strong action against those who compromise the safety of our schools.”

“Government schools have clear processes in place to respond to any incidents of violence and aggression, including reporting incidents to police where appropriate.”

“Government school staff work to ensure the safety and wellbeing of children in schools. Schools report any case of suspected child abuse to the relevant authorities, including police.”

Originally published as The Victorian postcodes with the highest criminal offence rates at schools revealed