Is London getting less safe?

Depends what part of London you are referring to.
Central London, while not completely safe AT ALL is relatively safe and you should be fine.

But then the outskirts of London, East London, South London and places like Croydon etc… are awful right now.

Not ‘safe’ at all.

was in SW London last week visiting a relative and felt completely ok. Just took the normal precautions. Was brought up in SE London and Croydons always been more problematic. I’m now a country bumpkin so do notice the difference when I go to London. Up there on Monday for a hospital appointment so hope it’s all ok.

Stats can be interpreted or published in so many ways, so at to suit the reader or indeed the writer. If a crime rate goes up, it's worth looking at the context of the statistics. Is that just reported crimes? Are they attempting to factor in unreported crimes, and if so how have they opted to do that?

If you measured the percentage of people in the countryside carrying things that may be considered weapons I think it'd dwarf the city. While walking the dog I often pass a guy carrying a shotgun. 😆 I've carried a pocket knife every day for the last 15 years, never got into any trouble and no-one bats an eyelid when I use my knife for stuff openly in shops or while outside or whatever

I wonder if people in cities go round - with some justification - suspecting everyone else all the time? When everyone's cranky perhaps it makes everyone more likely to be a victim of bad stuff or even more likely to do bad stuff?