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Report Reveals Fall in Crime in Scotland

The Scottish Crime and Justice Survey (SCJS) for 2016-17 has revealed that crime in Scotland has fallen by around a third in just under a decade and more people than ever feel safe in their neighbourhood. 

The survey is based on interviews with almost 5,600 adults about their experience of crime, whether or not reported to police. It estimates there were around 712,000 crimes – 32% fewer than in 2008-09 – while property crime is down 34% and violence down 27% over the same period.

The survey also found that:

• Most adults in Scotland (77%) said they felt very or fairly safe walking alone in their local area after dark – the highest level ever measured by the SCJS – up from 74% two years before, and 66% in 2008-09
• Just over two-thirds (68%) of crime was property-related, while a third was violent crime – of which 72% were cases of minor assault resulting in no or negligible injury
• Most adults (86.6%) experienced no crime – with the proportion of Scots experiencing crime last year fewer than one-in-seven – down from around one-in-five in 2008-09
• 11.5% of adults were estimated to have been a victim of property crime and 2.9% of adults a victim of violent crime in the previous year
• The likelihood of being a victim of any crime was higher among younger adults (aged 16-24), those living in the most deprived areas and adults living in urban areas. This pattern was also found across both property and violent crime categories
• The proportion of younger adults experiencing violent crime has more than halved from 12% in 2008-09 to 5.3% in 2016-17, although they remain the age group most likely to have been victims of violence

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