Suspected drug deaths in Scotland: July to September 2021

5. Other sources of drug deaths information in Scotland

5.1 Drug death data

There are two different sets of statistics on the number of drug deaths in Scotland:

i. National Statistics published annually by National Records of Scotland.

These are the official figures on the number of drug-related deaths registered in Scotland each year. Drug-related deaths are identified using data from death registration records supplemented with information from the Crown Office and Procurator Fiscal Service and forensic pathologists. 'Drug-related deaths in Scotland in 2020' includes more detail on the sources of data used to produce these National Statistics.

ii. Management information from Police Scotland on suspected drug deaths.

This operational data is available more rapidly and more frequently than the NRS annual statistics described at (i) and provides a more timely indication of the likely trend in drug-related deaths. However, this management information is not subject to the same level of validation and quality assurance as National Statistics as it is based on officers' observations and other circumstantial evidence, and it is not a replacement for the final drug-related death statistics produced by NRS. Section 5.3 of this report, "Relationship between Police Scotland suspected drug deaths and NRS drug-related deaths", has more detail on how this data correlates with the National Statistics produced by NRS.

More information on the data sources, methodologies and interpretation of the data can be found in Annex B.

5.2 NRS National Statistics - Drug-related deaths in Scotland in 2020

On 30 July 2021 National Records of Scotland published 'Drug-related deaths in Scotland in 2020'. These official statistics are used in the development of policy by the Scottish Government and other interested parties such as the Drug Deaths Taskforce, NHS Boards and local Alcohol and Drug Partnerships.

In 2020, there were 1,339 drug-related deaths registered in Scotland, 5% (59 deaths) more than in 2019. This was the largest number ever recorded since the series began in 1996. Drug-related deaths have been increasing since 1996 but since 2013 the upward trend has been steeper.

Source: National Records of Scotland

5.3 Relationship between Police Scotland suspected drug deaths and NRS drug-related deaths

Source: National Records of Scotland and Police Scotland

The Police Scotland suspected drug deaths correlate very closely with the NRS drug-related death statistics. Since the period ending in December 2018, the rolling 12-month Police Scotland figures have ranged between 3% and 6% above the NRS drug-related death figures.

The table below shows both of the measures for calendar years 2018, 2019 and 2020:

Source: NRS and Police Scotland

More information on the data sources, methodologies and interpretation of the data can be found in Annex B.