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Publication - Statistics

Criminal Proceedings in Scotland, 2022-23

Published
17 December 2024
From
Cabinet Secretary for Justice and Home Affairs, +1 more … Minister for Victims and Community Safety
Directorate
Safer Communities Directorate, +1 more … Justice Directorate
Topic
Law and order, Public safety and emergencies
ISBN
9781836911289

Statistics on criminal proceedings concluded in Scottish courts and alternative measures to prosecution issued by the police and the Crown Office and Procurator Fiscal Service are presented for the 10 years from 2013-14 to 2022-23.

View supporting documents Supporting documents

6. Court sentencing

(Tables 7-8 and 11)

The main types of penalty or sentence given to those found guilty in Scottish Courts are custodial sentences, community sentences and financial penalties.

For less serious cases or where it is felt the main punishment types are not suitable, the individual found guilty can be “admonished” (given a verbal warning from the Sheriff). A full listing of the range of court disposals is outlined in Annex D.

High-level summary

Headline in Court sentencing

(Tables 7a, 7b, 11)

Of all people convicted during 2022-23:

  • 13% were issued custodial sentences (8,923)
  • 24% were issued community sentences (16,246), and
  • 45% were issued financial penalties (30,351)

A further 18% of people were issued other sentences (12,547), which are mostly admonishments (Chart 7).

Year on year change (2021-22 to 2022-23)

There was an overall increase of 15% between 2021-22 and 2022-23 in the number of people convicted and in each main penalty as follows:

  • Custodial sentences up 9% to 8,923
  • Community sentences up 15% to 16,246
  • Financial penalties up 13% to 30,351
  • All other sentences up 22% to 12,547

Change over the latest 10 years (2013-14 to 2022-23)

There was an overall decrease of 36% in the number of convictions from 2013-14 to 2022-23. Over the same time period:

  • Custodial sentences have fallen by 37%
  • Community sentences have fallen by 11%
  • Financial Penalties have fallen by 47%
  • All other sentences have fallen by 19%

Key points to note

  • The 15% increase in people given a main penalty of a community sentence between 2021-22 and 2022-23 was driven by a 21% rise in Community Payback Orders (from 10,475 to 12,632). Over the same span, other types of community sentence either held steady or declined.

Chart 8. Longer term trends in sentencing show shifts away from financial penalties and towards community sentences.

Proportion of sentence types imposed in Scottish criminal courts, 2013-14, 2021-22 and 2022-23.

A clustered bar chart showing the proportion of sentence types imposed in 2013-14, 2021-22 and 2022-23. The highest proportion for each three years was Financial penalty, at 55%, 45% and 45% respectively. The proportion of Community sentences has increased, from 17%, to 24%. The proportion of Custody sentences has increased, from 15% to 17%, and finally 18%.

Chart 9. Males make up a larger proportion of custodial and community sentences than convictions as a whole.

Total convictions and disposal type in Scottish criminal courts, by gender, 2022-23.

A stacked bar chart showing that males make up the majority of convictions for all disposal types in 2022-23. Males make up 83% of all convictions, and have higher proportions for Custody (93%) and Community sentence (85%).

Contact

Email: justice_analysts@gov.scot

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