Reconviction Statistics 2015-16

The latest reconviction statistics for the 2015-16 offender cohort have been published today by Scotland's Chief Statistician. The figures show that reconvictions have decreased again, continuing the general downwards trend over the past decade.

The reconviction rate has decreased over the past year by 1.3 percentage points, from 28.3% in 2014-15, to 27.0% in 2015-16. The average number of reconvictions, a measure of how often offenders are reconvicted, also decreased over the same period from 0.50 to 0.47, a decrease of 6%.

Over the longer term, in the decade between 2006-07 and 2015-16, the reconviction rate has decreased by 5.4 percentage points from 32.4% to 27.0%. In the same period, the average number of reconvictions per offender has decreased by 22% from 0.60 to 0.47.

As in previous years, male offenders are reconvicted more often, on average, than female offenders. In 2015-16, the average number of reconvictions per offender for male offenders was 0.49 which is 23% higher than the value of 0.40 for female offenders. However, both figures are lower than they were in 2014-15, with a 6% decrease for males (from 0.52) and an 11% decrease for females (from 0.45).

Offenders who committed a crime of dishonesty had the highest number of reconvictions per offender compared to those who had committed other crime types. Offenders who committed a crime of dishonesty had on average 0.92 reconvictions per offender in 2015-16, whereas offenders who committed a sexual crime had the lowest number of reconvictions per offender (0.17 in 2015-16). The type of crime committed by offenders is one of a range of factors affecting reconvictions, including the sentence received, offending history and characteristics of individual offenders.

The reconviction rate for CPOs, the most commonly used community sentence, was 30.8% in 2015-16, which was a decrease of 2.1 percentage points from 32.9% 2014-15. The average number of reconvictions per offender for CPOs also fell over the past year from 0.59 to 0.54, a decrease of 8%.

18.6% of individuals in 2015-16 who received a non-court disposal from the police and 15.1% who received a non-court disposal from the Crown Office and Procurator Fiscal Service, such as a warning or fine, received another non-court disposal within a year.

For the first time, reconviction rates for Extended Sentences and Supervised Release Orders, and repeat non-court disposal rates for Recorded Police Warnings have been published. The publication also includes experimental statistics of reconviction rates based on the local authority of offenders residence.

Official statistics are produced by professionally independent statistical staff - more information on the standards of official statistics in Scotland can be accessed at: http://www.gov.scot/Topics/Statistics/About

Background

The full statistical publication is available at: www.gov.scot/stats/bulletins/01315

This publication contains detailed analyses of reconviction rates and the average number of reconvictions per offender by: offender characteristics, sentence type, crime type, and local authority.

• The reconviction rate, is defined as the proportion of offenders who are reconvicted within a year after being released from a custodial sentence or given a non-custodial sentence.
• The average number of reconvictions per offender, is the number of times, on average, that offenders in a cohort are reconvicted within a year after being released from a custodial sentence or given a non-custodial sentence.

Users of these data on reconviction rates for planning and targeting of resources include: the Scottish Government, Local Authorities, the Scottish Courts and Tribunals Service, Police Scotland, and Community Justice Scotland.

Further information on Crime and Justice statistics within Scotland can be accessed at: http://www.gov.scot/topics/statistics/browse/Crime-Justice