COMMUNITIES living near to the city’s two universities are some of the safest student areas in the country.

The neighbourhoods surrounding Oxford University and Oxford Brookes saw fewer than 20 incidents of burglary, robbery and violent or sexual crimes per thousand residents – the 11th and 12th lowest rates outside London.

The pair were also fourth and fifth safest in the South East.

The figures from the Complete University Guide are not just for crimes committed on university premises or by or on students, but also include the communities nearby.

Crimes between May 2014 and April this year were recorded in wards within three miles of the main campuses.

Oxford University performed slightly better than its counterpart Brookes, with both institutions seeing fewer than five burglaries, less than one robbery and fewer than 12 violent or sexual offences committed per 1,000 people. Areas around King’s College London saw almost 50 crimes per 1,000 residents for the combined offences while the worst outside London was the Royal Northern College of Music in Manchester.

Report author Dr Bernard Kingston urged universities to produce their own figures. He said: “All prospective students should be able to compare the risks in and near individual institutions with much greater precision.”