Drug offences on the North Yorkshire coast have surged by over 30 per cent in the past year, a rise police attribute to increased proactive stop and searches.
DRUG offences on the North Yorkshire coast have risen by more than 30 per cent in the past year.
North Yorkshire Police has reported a 31 per cent increase in drug offences in Scarborough and Whitby in 2025-26, alongside an 8 per cent increase in the overall crime rate.
The coastal area has the highest relative rate of crime in North Yorkshire, with 87.56 crimes recorded for every 1,000 people in 2025-26, up from 82.44 the previous year.
NYP said that the increase in drug offences reflected “increased proactive policing” on the coast.
The number of drug offences went up from 314 in 2024-25 to 413 in 2025-26.
More than half (52 per cent) of the drug crime rate was from cannabis possession, while possession of all other controlled drugs was 34 per cent of the total, and drug dealing (trafficking in controlled drugs) accounted for the remaining 14 per cent.
A newly published report states:
“The significant rise reflects the increase in proactivity by officers in the area.
It went on to say:
“the detection rate across the command for all drug crime during the last financial year was 63.19 per cent while the force average for the same time frame was 51.37 per cent.”
North Yorkshire Police officers said 649 people were stop and searched in the area last year, of which 377 (58 per cent) were for suspected drug possession.
Of the 377 drug searches, 94 (25 per cent) resulted in an “arrest or positive outcome”.
However, the report notes:
“These figures do not include people arrested for other offences who were searched and drugs located, they are purely relating to proactive stop and searches by officers on patrol.”
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