IN the middle of the day, a small handful of people wait at a bus-stop in one of the most deprived areas of the UK.
The streets around them are eerily quiet, with the local chippie ready for a lunchtime rush that may never come – surrounded by shuttered-up shops.
Those who do venture out are wary of strangers for good reason. Crime in Redditch, Worcestershire, has shot up in the past few years, with more incidents than ever reported last month.
Residents tell us this is because of widespread drug-dealing and abuse, anti-social behaviour and a culture of gang warfare between towns and even rival schools.
Kim Peace, 67, lives on the most deprived Redditch estate, Winyates.
Asked if she feels safe on the streets there, she says: “Redditch is not what it used to be. I’ve lived her 53 years, and everybody is careful because you have to be. I was ten when I moved here and it was much safer back then.
“Estates like this attract a lot of issues like drug dealing, gangs and a lot of knife crime.
“I know four people, friends, who’ve been stabbed at Woodrow, which is the estate down the road. One of them was attacked with a machete.
“Luckily, they all survived but it’s scary that so many people carry knives, and some of them are only 13 or 14. I wouldn’t go out here at night.
“I’m lucky. I live in a street with a lot of people the same age as me and we have a nice community. The only problem we have is youngsters on motorbikes churning up the grass.”
The overall crime rate in 2023, when Redditch was dubbed one of the ‘worst’ towns in the UK, was 86 crimes per 1,000 people.
Fast forward to September 2025, and recent figures show the rate is 97.2 crimes per 1,000, higher than the national average of 72.
Kim’s son Craig Peace, 42, says: “Redditch is full of rival gangs, whether it’s based on race, rival drug dealers, rival estates like Winyates and Churchill, or even rival schools.
“Some gangs come from outside of Redditch, usually from Birmingham, just to start trouble on the streets here, with too many people getting stabbed.
“Drugs are a big problem too, which leads to more crime. People used to be able to leave their doors open, but not any more.”
Between January last year and June this year, 299 offences drug-related crimes were recorded in Redditch – a figure significantly higher than neighbouring areas.
In November, cops dismantled a ‘drugs supply enterprise’ operating in Worcestershire after 25-year-old Kane Brough was busted with “large quantities of cocaine and cannabis”.
Shocking pictured revealed how a converted gun and ammunition was discovered in a Ford Connect van linked to his address. He was jailed for 10 years.
Meanwhile, in July police uncovered an estimated £1.3million-worth of cocaine stuffed in Sports Direct Bags after a high speed chase with David Sherratt in nearby Alvechurch.
The gangster, who was jailed for six years, was found to have been involved in the collection of a further 135kg of drugs – worth up to £5million in total – and told officers the seizure was “not a bad day for them”.
Living in deprivation
More than half of all households in Redditch are living in deprivation.
Those venturing off the notorious estates may find similar scenes when they arrive in the town centre, with drug deals taking place in broad daylight, closed-down shops and drunks surrounding the church.
But despite its issues, there are some who still take pride in their town, with its architectural beauty and with access to the beautiful lake and open fields of Arrow Country Park.
Malcolm Hicks, 77, is the chairman of the Redditch History Museum, which is a charity.
He says the town has steadily changed since 1973 with the opening of the Kingfisher Shopping Centre, now packed with high street chains like Primark, Pandora, Costa Coffee and Starbucks.
He said: “A lot of the local shops shut down as the shopping centre replaced a lot of independent shops, and recently everything has become too dear.
“Redditch has a lot of beautiful architecture which attracts visitors, especially the old Cottage Hospital built by the Smallwood family in 1895, which was then used by the NHS when it came into existence.
“But we do have some problems here, like the drunks who hang around the church and there is obviously some drug dealing or taking going on.
“Some people are scared to come into Redditch and put off because of the drunks who are asking for change or money, and it is a bit of a worry.”
Pearl Swanborough, 73, a retired care home cook, has lived in Redditch for 30 years.
“A lot of people down Redditch but there’s a lot going on here, plenty to do for children like brownies, cubs and scouts, there’s drama groups for kids as well as for adults.
“It’s a new town where families came in from outside, a lot of them dysfunctional families, which breed dysfunctional families and so it goes on.
“The fact there is a high level of deprivation will affect the town because people are stressed, which causes illnesses.
“But I’m also aware of the drugs issue. You walk through Redditch and you see people waiting for their pick-up or drugs deals or you can smell it because they’re smoking cannabis all the time.
“I belong to a local church group with a good community so hopefully we can put some positivity back into the town.”
‘Everyone knows drugs are a problem’
As we walked through the town towards the weekly market, a gang of youths in hoodies were screaming and swearing with another group congregated in the church yard of St Stephens, while men clutching beer cans stumbled up some steps and sat on benches.
Chloe Hinton, 23, was walking her Rottweiler called Paddy.
She lives near the town centre and works 12-hour days as a carer.
“One of the big issues here is the drugs problem, everybody knows that’s a problem,” said Chloe.
“It’s pretty quiet here in all, but I don’t go into town very often, I just don’t want to.
“The best thing for me is I have a massive Asda down the end of the street so don’t have to walk into town.”
PC Mike Moore, who looks after the town centre, said drug and alcohol misuse is their ‘biggest policing priority’.
“Drug and alcohol misuse leads to thefts. The desperation of some of these individuals can lead to disorder amongst themselves more than anybody else,” he said.
“We do tackle the drug issues in Redditch quite robustly. About 12 to 18 months ago, we had the Public Space Protection Order put in place in Redditch.
“That was authorised by the local authority. So that gives us extra powers in the town.
“If there’s any antisocial behaviour within the area where it’s geographically related, we can disperse individuals up to 48 hours, and if you continue breaching that order, can lead to an appearance in court.
“But we’ve got to look at the long term. Intervention as such is where we’re not solely looking at prosecuting these individuals, some of these individuals have had big traumas in their life, which has led to alcohol and substance misuse.
“So we brought in the Maggs charity [a frontline homeless charity] from Worcester.”
The Sun has approached Redditch Borough Council for comment.
