In 2021/22 a new crime group structure was introduced for recorded crime statistics, and the 2021-22 annual bulletin Recorded Crime in Scotland, 2021-22 was the first to reflect this new structure. The most significant change was the re-categorisation of common assault and stalking from the Miscellaneous offences group to the ‘non-sexual crimes of violence group’. The data has been back-revised to ensure that time series analysis could be maintained.
Trends in crime and violence recorded by the police.
Trends in crime and violence captured by survey data.
Trends in crime and violence recorded by the police
In 2023-24 the police recorded a total of 299,780 crimes and 174,073 offences. The term 'crime' is generally used for the more serious criminal acts; the less serious acts are termed 'offences', although the term 'offence' may also be used in relation to serious breaches of criminal law. The distinction is only for reporting of statistics and has no connection to how police investigate criminal activity.
Between 2022-23 and 2023-24 the total number of crimes recorded by the police in Scotland increased 4% from 289,362 to 299,780.
In recent data, recorded crimes are grouped into six categories: non-sexual crimes of violence; sexual crimes; crimes of dishonesty, damage and reckless behaviour; crimes against society; and Coronavirus restrictions.
Breakdown by type of crime:
'Non-sexual crimes of violence' accounted for 24% of all crimes recorded by the police in 2023-24, an increase of 4% from 2022-23.
'Sexual crimes' (including rape and attempted rape, sexual assault and prostitution, causing to view sexual activity or images, communicating indecently, threatening to/disclosing intimate images, indecent photos of children and other sexual crimes) accounted for 5% of all recorded crime in Scotland in 2023-24. A total of 14,484 crimes were recorded in this category in 2023-24 (a 1% decrease since 2022-23).
'Crimes of dishonesty' (including theft, shoplifting, housebreaking and fraud) accounted for 37% of all recorded crime in Scotland in 2023-24. A total of 111,054 crimes were recorded in this category in 2023-24; up 7% from 2022-23.
'Crimes against society' accounted for 21% of all recorded crime in Scotland in 2023-24. In 2023-24 the number of ‘Crimes against society’ recorded by the police was 61,650, an increase of 4% from 2022-23.
'Damage and reckless behaviour' accounted for 14% of all recorded crime in Scotland in 2023-24. The number of recorded crimes of 'Damage and reckless behaviour' was 41,129 in 2023-24, down 5% from 2022-23.
Crimes relating to Coronavirus restrictions were recorded between 2019-20 and 2021-22, during the pandemic, accounting for 7% of total crimes at their peak in 2020-21.
Non-sexual crimes of violence are further categorised into: murder and culpable homicide; death by dangerous driving; serious assault and attempted murder; common assault; robbery; crimes under the Domestic Abuse (Scotland) Act 2018; and other non-sexual violence.
This is a new grouping structure, where, among other changes, ‘common assault’ and ‘stalking’ were reclassified as crimes (not offences) and now included in 'non-sexual crimes of violence'. Common assault now constitutes the majority of non-sexual crimes of violence (83% in 2023-24).
Non-sexual crimes of violence recorded by the police have been increasing since 2014-15, but remain below the peak recorded between 2003-04 and 2011-12 (Recorded Crime in Scotland 2023-24, page 12).
Breakdown by type of non-sexual crime of violence:
Murder and culpable homicide. There has been an 8% decrease in homicides across Scotland over the last 10 years.
Death by dangerous driving accounted for less than 1% of non-sexual crimes of violence in 2023-24, numbering the same as 10 years ago.
Serious assault and attempted murder accounted for 5% of non-sexual crimes of violence in Scotland in 2023-24.
Common assault was added to the non-sexual crimes of violence group with the new crime group structure and, as outlined above, accounts for 83% of crimes in this category in 2023-24. There were more common assaults in 2023-24 than in any of the preceding 10 years, representing an increase of 2% since 2014-15 and 3% since 2022-23.
Robbery accounted for 3% of non-sexual crime of violence in 2023-24. In the ten years between 2014-15 and 2023-24 there has been a 28% increase in this category (18% increase since 2022-23).
Domestic Abuse (Scotland) Act 2018 crimes accounted for 3% of non-sexual crimes of violence in 2023-24, of which 94% were incidents in which the victim was female. The 2,042 recorded Domestic Abuse (Scotland) Act crimes in 2023-24 is the highest number recorded since the implementation of the Act (2019-20), and represents a 21% increase since then. Domestic abuse incidents are classed as Domestic Abuse (Scotland) Act 2018 crimes if they relate to a series of acts that evidence a continuity of purpose: other domestic abuse incidents will not have been recorded in this category.
Other non-sexual violence accounted for 6% of non-sexual crimes of violence in 2023-24: an increase of 11% since 2022-23.
Trends in crime and violence captured by survey data
Crime recorded by the police fails to reveal the incidence of all crime committed across Scotland; this is because a high proportion of crimes are not reported to the police. In Scotland, the Scottish Crime and Justice Survey (SCJS) is a national survey of people's experiences and perceptions of crime in Scotland.
The most recent data available for the SCJS is for 2021/22. In 2021/22, the Scottish Crime and Justice Survey estimated that the police became aware of 29% of crime, a lower proportion than in other years.
The 2021/22 SCJS estimated that:
Approximately 494,000 crimes were experienced by adults. Of these an estimated 73% were crimes to property and 27% were violent crimes. This represents a fall of 53% in the overall level of crime, and 58% fall in violent crime since 2008/09.
10% of adults were victims of at least one crime. This statistic is used by the Scottish Government as a National Indicator. Trends by different equality groups can be explored on the Equality Evidence Finder.
The majority of crime victimisation related to property crime, such that it is estimated that 8.7% of all adults, had experienced property crime, including housebreaking and other household theft, vehicle theft and vandalism. In comparison 1.7% of people had been a victim of violent crime, such as assault or robbery. People under 25 years of age, those living in the most deprived areas in Scotland, disabled people, and those living in urban areas were most likely to experience crime.
More than three quarters of adults (76%) thought the local crime rate had stayed the same or reduced in the past two years. This statistic is used by the Scottish Government as a National Indicator. Trends by different equality groups can be explored on the Equality Evidence Finder.
The Scottish Household Survey asks respondents whether they feel very or fairly safe when walking alone in their neighbourhood after dark and whether they feel safe at home alone at night. Based on the 2022 survey (the most recent non-telephone survey), it was estimated that 81% of adults felt very or fairly safe when walking alone in their neighbourhood after dark.
Please note: If you require the most up-to-date data available, please check the data sources directly as new data may have been published since these data pages were last updated. Although we endeavour to ensure that the data pages are kept up-to-date, there may be a time lag between new data being published and the relevant ScotPHO web pages being updated.
