Scottish Crime and Justice Survey: user workshops - summary
Summary of the feedback gathered during three user workshops on the Scottish Crime and Justice Survey held during January 2022.
10. Annex B: Paper for Workshop 2 on User Engagement Strategies
1. Introduction
The Scottish Crime and Justice Survey team are in the process of a re-procurement exercise. The user engagement portion of this exercise began with a Consultation (hosted on Citizen Space) and a set of associated discussion events. Both the consultation and discussion events gave users and stakeholders the opportunity to provide comment on the strengths and limitations of the survey, in addition to reflections on how the survey might be adapted through re-procurement. Our series of User Workshops build on three key themes arising from the consultation and discussion events. This workshop, Workshop 2, on 'User Engagement Strategies', aims to gather feedback which will help us improve the user experience, and increase survey usage to maximise influence and impact.
This paper will: i) provide an overview of the user materials and tools currently available; ii) outline feedback we have received so far and, iii) outline some possible topics for the open discussion.
During the workshop, the SCJS team will provide an overview of these areas before opening up to suggestions and questions from attendees.
2. The Scottish Crime and Justice Survey (SCJS)
The SCJS is a large-scale social survey which asks people about their experiences and perceptions of crime in Scotland. Over the years, the SCJS has asked over ninety thousand people about their views and experiences of crime and justice in Scotland. It has found a 46% fall in crime between 2008/09 and 2019/20 and improvements in people's feelings of safety. Importantly, it has also identified varying levels of both crime victimisation and feelings of safety amongst different groups in society.
The SCJS is a key source of evidence on crime victimisation in Scotland, as well as issues relating to policing and the criminal justice system. It is used extensively by the Scottish Government to inform the design and effective delivery of policy as well as by academic stakeholders and justice organisations. The SCJS and Police Recorded Crime are essential complementary sources of data that, together, present a fuller picture of crime in Scotland. The SCJS captures crime that does not come to the attention of the police, and helps validate the police recorded crime data and ensure crime and justice policy is based upon a comprehensive understanding of the victimisation rate in Scotland.
3. Covid-19 Impact on SCJS
In 2020, all Scottish Government face-to-face interviewing, including the SCJS, was suspended and the Scottish Victimisation Telephone Survey (SVTS) was developed. The Scottish Government introduced the SVTS as a discrete collection to the SCJS and the results are based on a sample of around 2,700 telephone interviews conducted in September and October 2020.
The current survey year (2021/22) has also been affected by research restrictions as a result of COVID-19. This year, the SCJS is being carried out using a mixed-mode approach. 'Knock to Nudge'[6] is being used to offer respondents an interview by telephone or via video call, until such time it is deemed appropriate to include an in-home face-to-face option as well. The self-completion section of the survey is currently completed by the respondent online or on paper.
4. Re-Procurement
The Scottish Crime and Justice Survey (SCJS) in its current form was established in 2008/09, although a crime survey has run in Scotland since 1982. From October 2015, the SCJS has been delivered by Ipsos & ScotCen but this contract is coming to an end. Therefore, to ensure the continuation of the survey and the continued provision of evidence on crime victimisation in Scotland, a re-procurement process is needed. Our proposed procurement timeline would ensure that a Supplier would be in place in October 2022 and able to begin fieldwork in Spring of 2023.
5. Re-Procurement Work Streams
- Mapping Users of the SCJS Data: Identifying users of the SCJS data and reviewing how, and to what extent, they engage with the survey in order to become better informed about user requirements.
- Literature Review: Reviewing the criminology literature to locate the SCJS, its key concepts and ideas within the wider discourse on crime and victimisation.
- Review of International Crime Surveys: Reviewing existing, international crime surveys to identify areas of best practice and lessons to be learned.
- Formal Consultation & Discussion Events: A formal, written consultation hosted on Citizen Space, accompanied by live discussion events, designed to enable users to provide feedback on the SCJS and how it might be adapted. This consultation closed on the 9th December.
- Options Appraisal: Different survey design options for the next iteration of the SCJS appraised by a wide range of internal and external users and stakeholders.
- User Workshops: Three user workshops to collect further user and stakeholder feedback on i) Options for survey design, ii) User engagement strategies and iii) Questionnaire Development.
6. Workshop Aims
This workshop aims to gather feedback which will help us improve the SCJS user experience. By doing so, we hope to increase usage and maximise survey influence and impact. We aim to gather feedback on:
- The way the SCJS team communicates about the survey
- The data and materials available to users
- How we can improve user experience to maximise survey usage
7. Communication and Online Resources
The Scottish Crime and Justice Survey collection on the Scottish Government website is the home and central online presence of the survey. All new publications and data are hosted here upon release. It is also the place for SCJS participants to find out more information (including our privacy notice) under 'Interviewee Information'.
The SCJS webpages on the new Scottish Government website launched in May 2020. On this area of the new website, previous findings are available which date back to 2016/17. There is also a link to our archive of older publications, which contains SCJS results and data back to the first SCJS in 2008/09. Further updates and resources are also available under the 'Other Resources' section of the landing page.
Alerts to updates on SCJS related activity (such as new publications and this series of workshops) are circulated via ScotStat. Registered users can receive notification of new publications and related activity.
Please note that we will be moving to a new system on the 1st March 2022. While we are changing the underlying system, the ScotStat branding will be retained and the new system will serve the same function. Existing ScotStat users should re-register with the new system to continue to receive updates. Further information and a signup form is available at the following link: ScotStat Register: Guidance
The @SGJusticeAnalys Twitter page posts updates on SCJS related activity, and other research and statistics on crime and justice in Scotland.
Users can get in touch with the SCJS team to ask further questions or provide feedback on the survey at any time by getting in touch over email: SCJS@gov.scot.
- SCJS User Group
The SCJS team have established a user group to ensure that user engagement is an on-going part of each survey cycle. Members are drawn from government, academia, the justice system and third sector. The user group is an essential way to ensure that the survey remains relevant and able to respond to changing needs - for example, in helping to determine and design questionnaire content. If you would like to become involved in the user group, please contact us: SCJS@gov.scot.
8. Available User Materials
There are a variety of materials available to users which are published on the SCJS collection page of the Scottish Government website. Each of these materials are described below:
The Main Findings Report is the main publication which documents the results of the survey. The report contains a wide-range of evidence about experiences and perceptions of crime, the police and justice system in Scotland, as well as results from the survey's self-completion modules which cover drug use, stalking and harassment, partner abuse, and sexual victimisation. The report also includes one-page infographic summaries by theme.
The Key Findings Summary outlines key headline results and trends emerging from the survey. This document provides an overview of survey results in less detail than the Main Findings Report.
For users who wish to explore the data collected by the SCJS, data tables for each topic area covered by the survey are available for download in Microsoft Excel format.
The interactive online tool graphically displays time-series data using SCJS findings. Using this tool, users can view findings for various sections of the SCJS, including rates of crime victimisation, confidence in and attitudes to the police, and perceptions of crime. Different visualisations can be created to highlight different aspects of the data, such as viewing trends over time and breakdowns of police divisions relative to the national average.
Supporting documents are also made available. These documents include the Technical Report which describe how the SCJS is designed, the way in which it was conducted, and how the survey data are produced. Other documents are also available, such as the survey questionnaire, which details all questions presented to participants.
The UK Data Service is an online resource which holds a collection of economic, social and population data for research and teaching. The SCJS data is available on the UKDS website for registered users.
9. Feedback Received So Far
Our consultation has provided some information on the way users engage with the available survey materials. Below is a short summary of information and feedback obtained so far. Please note that the feedback below is gathered from those who responded to the consultation, and is therefore not representative of all SCJS users. It is provided to illustrate some initial findings.
Main Findings Report: The majority of responding users use the Main Findings report. Users state they use the main findings report to view trends in overall crime and also results in specific topics.
Excel Data Tables: The majority of responding users do not use the Excel data tables. Users have stated that they do not use the data tables as summaries are available in the main findings report, which makes the use of these tables unnecessary. However, those that do use the data tables use them for detail or further analysis on their topics of interest.
Interactive Data Tool: The majority of responding users do not use the interactive data tool. Users have stated that they do not use the interactive tool as the reports provide the information they need, and the tool does not provide the level of detail they require. However, those that do use the interactive data tool state they use it to examine trends over time, compare areas, generate questions for further research, and quickly provide data on the areas of interest.
SCJS data available through the UKDS: The majority of responding users do not use SCJS data which is available through the UKDS. Users have stated they do not use the UKDS as they were unfamiliar with or unaware of the UKDS, or this was not relevant to them. However, those that do use data available through the UKDS use it for additional detail or further analysis on their topics of interest
10. Suggested Areas for Discussion
As a starting position for discussion, a series of topics and question are proposed below. However, it is important to note that discussion is not limited to these topics, and all feedback and discussion is welcomed.
The suggested points of discussion are:
SCJS announcements and communication
- How aware are you of new SCJS publications, resources and tools?
- How could our communication be improved?
Satisfaction with currently available materials
- Do you find the SCJS resources and tools to be useful and easy to use? If not, why not?
- Do you find it easy to find out if the SCJS covers the topics you're interested in? If not, what could be improved to make this easier?
- Are there any other resources you would like us to offer?
How can we improve?
- What aspects do we do well?
- What could be done better?
- What would make you engage and use the survey more?
Contact
Email: SCJS@gov.scot
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