Safer Communities and Justice Statistics Monthly Data Report: January 2025

Improved public perception of local crime rate since 2008-09. The public feel safer in their local communities. The SCJS found that, in 2021-22, 76% of adults thought that the local crime rate had stayed the same or reduced in the past two years. This shows an improvement from 69% in 2008-09 and 73% in 2019-20.

Most adults feel safe walking alone after dark. The SCJS found that over three-quarters (76%) of adults said that they felt very or fairly safe walking alone in their neighbourhood after dark in 2021-22, unchanged from 2019-20 but an increase from 66% in 2008-09.

Just under half of adults say police are doing a good or excellent job. The SCJS reported that, in 2021-22, 49% of adults said that the police in their local area were doing a good or excellent job, down from 55% in 2019-20 and 61% in 2012-13.

Fall in emergency hospital admissions due to assault since 2014-15. In 2023-24, there were 1,691 emergency hospital admissions due to assault, including 438 due to assault with a sharp object. These were, respectively, 33% and 18% lower than in 2014-15.

Number of fires fell 10% in the last year. In 2023-24, there were 24,060 fires in Scotland, down 10% on 2022-23 and the lowest in the last ten years. There were 42 fire fatalities in 2023-24, down from 43 in 2022-23 and around the average for the last decade.

Chart 7: Number of fatal fire casualties – 2014-15 to 2023-24

*New* Number of deliberate fires has decreased. There were 278 deliberate building fires in quarter 2 of 2024-25, down from 313 in the same quarter of 2023-24. Over the same period, the number of deliberate road vehicle fires fell from 226 to 206.

Chart 8: Deliberate building and road vehicle fires, 2013-14 Q1 to 2024-25 Q1

Note: The figures used in this chart are the average of the quarter in question and the three quarters prior, in order to allow for seasonal variation.

* New * Unwanted fire alarm signals made up 17% of incidents in the second quarter of 2024-25. Unwanted fire alarm signals (UFAS) describe avoidable false alarm signals from a workplace, either from an automatic fire alarm or from a person. There were 3,324 UFAS incidents in quarter 2 of 2024-25, which made up 17% of all incidents attended in that quarter. This is down from the same quarter of 2023-24 when UFAS made up 19% of all incidents. The Scottish Fire and Rescue Service introduced a new policy in July 2023 which outlined a change in how automatic fire alarm call outs are managed and led to a decrease in the number of UFAS incidents attended.