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In 2023, there were 246,580 reported burglaries throughout England and Wales, with Hackney, Lewisham, Wandsworth, Haringey, Lambeth, Enfield, Middlesbrough, Leeds, Kingston upon Hull and Coventry the 10 biggest crime hotspots.
Wherever you live in the UK, though, it’s important to secure your home – not only to deter burglars, vandals and porch thieves but also to make it a safer and more comfortable environment for your family.
So, how can you make your home more secure in 2024? Our guide to the best home security systems, which compares and contrasts the leading suppliers and tech on the market, is an excellent place to start – especially if you’re ready to get quotes from top security companies.
Read on to dive into the specific security technology you’ll need to safeguard your home. We’ll first explore how to identify and combat your property’s existing vulnerabilities and then delve into the seven best ways to secure your home in 2024.
Among the best ways to secure your UK home in 2024 are:
We’ll unpack each of these home security strategies below, looking at their pros and cons and whether they’re the right fit for your home. If you’d rather get straight to comparing different security setups and suppliers, though, we suggest starting with our guides on the best wireless home security systems or, if you live in an apartment rather than a traditional house, the best security systems for apartments.
Before exploring what new additions could make your home more secure, it’s important to take stock of your home’s existing security setup – or, more pressingly, its vulnerabilities.
Setting up your home security efforts for success involves getting the basics right:
Video doorbells allow you to see and even talk to whoever’s on your doorstep via a two-way microphone and speaker system. So when there’s a late-night knock on the door, you won’t have to peer around your curtain or use a peephole to see who’s there – you can simply pick up your smartphone or tablet, open an app and get a crystal-clear view of who’s on your front porch.
Essentially, video doorbells film and store footage of your front door to make your home more secure. And they can even make your life easier – the next time an Amazon Prime delivery arrives, you’ll be able to tell the driver where to leave your package without having to get up from the couch. (You don’t even have to be at home.)
Video doorbells rely on motion detectors, so they’ll only start when someone enters their range of vision. This helps prolong their battery life and ensures you’re not falling foul of any privacy laws. (You don’t, for example, want to be running a full-time CCTV service for your local neighbourhood.)
By capturing footage when someone comes near, video doorbells can also help deter – and even foil – porch pirates looking to pluck any delivered packages off your home’s threshold.
Plus, video doorbells are relatively easy to install, especially if you already have a wireless doorbell. In this case, you’ll simply need to fit the mounting bracket for the doorbell to the wall next to your front door – a process you can DIY or, if you’re not so handy with a drill, hire someone to do for you. If your existing doorbell is wired, though, we recommend calling an electrician to help out.
Indoor security cameras won’t be for everyone, but if you’re concerned about a break-in, they can be a highly effective way of deterring – and even catching – would-be burglars.
Like video doorbells, indoor cameras are part of a smart system that remotely and securely connects them to your mobile devices. The best home security cameras will also enable two-way communication, enabling you to interact with whoever’s at home when you’re out. On one level, an indoor camera is convenient, as you can use it to communicate remotely with family members. But on another, it could be life-saving because you could use the camera to let intruders know they’re being watched and that the police are on the way.
When it comes to positioning your home’s indoor cameras, target the entry points (doors and windows) as well as high-traffic areas such as living rooms and hallways. You might also want to ensure there’s a camera where valuables are stored – such as safes or jewellery drawers – and, if you have young children, place a camera in their room for extra peace of mind.
However, despite their budget-friendliness, some cheap home security systems on the market may not meet the entirety of your home’s surveillance needs.
So, be sure to look out for key indoor camera features such as night vision – enabling round-the-clock monitoring even at night – and arm/disarm functionality. These will allow you to initiate or disengage your cameras based on your conditions and schedules and customise them to the precise, ever-changing needs of your home and family.
Motion sensors are a key feature of both video doorbells and indoor cameras and are designed to detect movement in a specific area of your home, which then triggers an automated response.
This could be for simple convenience or utility – turning on a light to help you find your way around when it’s dark outside, for example – but it could also be for security. For instance, motion sensors can set off an alarm or send an alert to your smartphone so you can remotely keep tabs on happenings at your home.
Motion detectors come in different kinds, including:
Better still, motion sensors are getting even smarter, with many now utilising AI algorithms to learn and adapt to your home’s typical patterns of activity. If that sounds a little too Big Brother-y, don’t fret – this simply allows your motion sensors to distinguish normal behaviours from the suspicious kind, which reduces false alarms and improves your home’s overall security.
Making your home’s entryways bright and noisy can deter potential intruders. This can include installing outdoor lighting around your property’s perimeter and by your home’s entry points, such as gates, doors and windows. (Motion-activated lights are, again, crucial here – you don’t want your home to always be lit up like the Blackpool Tower.)
Similarly, a sturdy fence and lockable gate, while not foolproof, can provide an initial deterrence barrier against opportunistic thieves, such as porch pirates.
Even something as straightforward as a gravel driveway or path, which crunches underfoot, can make a difference, as will motion-activated alarms or sirens when someone sets foot on your property after dark. Consider, too, what signs you could place to deter burglars from making your home a target. These could be decals displaying the logo of your security company or signs to draw a potential intruder’s attention to the presence of security cameras on your property. (A basic “Beware of the Dog” sign works, too!)
For more information about securing your home’s exterior spaces to prevent burglars and intruders from entering your property, browse our guide to the best outdoor home security systems in the UK.
For the ultimate peace of mind, subscribing to a professional monitoring service provides your home with remote, real-time and round-the-clock protection by trained professionals.
Monitoring services keep an eye on your home 24/7 to check not only for intruders but also for fires, carbon monoxide leaks and other emergencies. This 24/7 monitoring ensures police and fire services are promptly dispatched to your home if you’re away or unable to call for help yourself.
Through a live feed, professional monitoring services can instantly assess any unfolding situations, verify alarms (or discount false ones) and act accordingly. Many services even offer two-way communication via a mobile app or control panel in your home, allowing them to convey potentially life-saving information to you in perilous situations.
You can also provide these companies with your emergency contact details, so if they’re unable to get a hold of you, they can contact your friends or neighbours for assistance.
Video doorbells, security cameras and motion sensors are all excellent ways to make your home more secure. However, these elements are best used not in isolation – ie as standalone, “set and forget” pieces of technology – but as part of a living, breathing, whole-house security system.
A whole-house security system incorporates several elements to fortify your home in a package customised to the specific needs of your property and the people within it.
This approach offers maximum flexibility, allowing you to build a system that fits your home rather than the other way around. However, such a comprehensive system will likely come with comparatively high costs – both upfront and ongoing, especially if you subscribe to a professional monitoring service – so it won’t be right for everyone. Unless you’re comfortable with a DIY approach (if so, we recommend exploring our guide to the best DIY home security systems) you’ll also need to factor in installation costs as well as the price of regular maintenance and camera footage storage.
The only security setup more effective than a customised, whole-house system? A smart one.
A smart security system isn’t just a system – it’s an ecosystem. Like the whole-house security systems we discussed above, a security ecosystem involves several components but has a key difference. Smart systems have a network of interconnected devices, sensors and technologies that work together and can be accessed, controlled and monitored from your smart device – wherever you happen to be.
This means that, remotely and from a single smartphone app, you can:
Smart security systems can also integrate with voice assistants, such as Amazon Alexa, Google Assistant and Apple HomeKit, as well as other, non-security-related smart technology such as smart light bulbs, smart light switches, smart speakers and even smart kitchen appliances.
With a smart system, you could, for example, programme smart lighting to turn on or off at specific times throughout the day or configure music or the TV to turn on when motion is detected outside to deter would-be intruders by creating the illusion of occupancy. And because this system also works with voice commands, you can manage your home’s security and general needs simply by speaking to it.
Imagine a situation where you’re preparing dinner but need to pop to the shop to grab a couple of ingredients before you get started. With a smart system, you could say something like, “Hey, Google. Lock the doors, arm the security system and preheat the oven to 180 degrees.”
On top of in-app control, you’ll also have a smart home “hub” – essentially, a central control centre for your smart security ecosystem that unites each piece of smart tech on a single interface. Generally, these hubs support different communication protocols (such as wifi, Zigbee and Z-Wave) to enable interoperability between your devices and systems.
There’s no way to completely burglar-proof your home, but you can take steps to minimise your home’s desirability as a target for thieves and intruders.
This would incorporate not only the multiple security technologies (such as video doorbells, cameras and motion sensors) we’ve discussed here but also a certain set of behaviours. Be mindful, for instance, of posting your holiday plans on social media, as burglars can use this information to target your home while you’re away. Establishing good relationships with your neighbours – and, if possible, joining a local neighbourhood watch group – is important, too.
When burglar-proofing your home, don’t, however, forget about the basics: secure your windows, install high-quality locks and ensure your property is as bright and noisy as possible – even when you’re away. And if you have a smart security ecosystem, all the better because you can link your lights or TV to convey occupancy while you and your family are out.
When it comes to securing your home, deterrence is half the battle – which doesn’t have to be expensive. You can, for instance, put up signs around your property indicating that your home has a security system installed (even if it doesn’t) and add fake cameras to deter thieves. Similarly, trimming overgrown vegetation around your property costs nothing and gives lurkers fewer places to hide and watch your home.
As for more concrete cheap home security measures, you can better secure your property’s doors and windows with strike plates, door jammers or door and window bars. These inexpensive reinforcements aren’t perfect, but they’ll make it harder for intruders to force their way into your home.
Many of the techniques and technology that apply to securing your home also apply to your garage: securing its windows and installing cameras and motion-activated sensors.
Another key, if rather basic, way to secure your garage is simply being more vigilant about closing its door when you’re not using it. To this end, a smart garage door opener – especially one integrated into a wider smart security ecosystem – is a big help.
These devices do away with remotes and key fobs and instead make your smartphone your garage door opener, allowing you to check your garage door’s status even from a remote location and satisfy that nagging fear that you forgot to shut it this morning. This also helps prevent thieves and vandals from entering your garage when you’re not home or – worse – using your garage as a way of gaining access to your house.
Securing your doors and windows is a crucial aspect of safeguarding your home, so we recommend getting in touch with a security professional for advice and installation rather than doing this yourself. However, some DIY door-securing might include:
As for strengthening your home’s windows, try:
