Recorded Crime in Scotland, 2014-15

Annex 7: Future considerations

6.50. As outlined in Annex 1 on Data Collection, we will assess whether any amendment to our revisions policy should be made before the 2015-16 publication. We will ask the Scottish Crime Recording Board to consider this issue further and users will be consulted accordingly if it is thought a change in practice would be beneficial.

6.51. At present, legacy police force systems are still in place for the recording of incidents and crimes. This means we can only receive an aggregate count of crimes and offences recorded by the police. We note that many of our users have an interest in more analysis of individual level crime data, which would allow, for example, new information on the age and gender of victims and perpetrators. Police Scotland are working on the development of a single crime recording system which when available, may lead to new opportunities in this area. All divisions within Police Scotland are scheduled to move onto the new system by the end of the 2016-17 financial year, which means 2017-18 could be the first reporting year for which individual level analysis could be incorporated into the Recorded Crime in Scotland bulletins. As the development of Police Scotland's recording system proceeds, we will consult with our statistical users at the appropriate time.

6.52. Where reported to the police, Cyber-Enabled crime will be recorded under the specific offence code for the registered crime (for example fraud, including online banking fraud and mass marketing fraud, and thefts such as using technology to steal personal data). With the development of the single crime recording system referred to above, provision has been made for the inclusion of a 'cybercrime' marker that will be able to provide a more accurate understanding of where there has been a Cyber element to a crime. As these IT developments progress, we will keep under review how these statistics can best incorporate any new information on cyber-enabled crime.

6.53. These Official Statistics on police recorded crimes and offences are split into seven recognised categories (as defined by the Scottish Government). HMICS noted in its 2014 audit of recorded crime that there should be a consideration of whether the current crime categories continue to reflect the public's perception of crime. The July 2015 meeting of the Scottish Crime Recording Board agreed to set up a working group to investigate this issue further and produce options for how a review could be taken forward. We will keep users informed as this work develops.

6.54. Consideration is also being given to the way users can access data. The tables which accompany this bulletin provide users with access to more data at local authority level. Consideration is also being given to Open Data.

However, we are always keen to hear users' views on our products. If you have any comments or suggestions on how you would like to access information, please contact us at justiceanalysts@gov.scot.