Scottish Crime Statistics - a perspective from the Statistics Authority Scotstat – Crime And Justice Statistics User Day 5 March 2012 Neil Jackson

Coverage of presentation Overview of the UK Statistics Authority The Assessment Programme Findings from the assessment of crime statistics

ONS Omnibus, 2007 Figures are generally accurate Figures are produced without political interference Government uses figures honestly %% Agree Neither agree nor disagree Disagree Base = 100%1112 Views about official statistics in general

EU Eurobarometer 2007 Do you trust official statistics?

Framework for National Statistics, 2000 New post - ‘National Statistician’ New set of rules - ‘Code of Practice’ New quality standard - ‘National Statistics’ New Watchdog –‘The Statistics Commission’

Statistics and Registration Service Act, 2007 New oversight body, the Statistics Authority replaces the Statistics Commission ONS becomes the Authority’s ‘Executive Office’ New statutory Code of Practice Formal assessment of ‘National Statistics’ against the Authority’s Code

About the Statistics Authority An independent body operating at arm's length from Government as a non-ministerial department A UK body, directly accountable to the UK Parliament and the devolved legislatures in Scotland, Wales and N Ireland Its statutory objective is to promote and safeguard the production and publication of official statistics that serve the public good

Activities Assessment Monitoring Reports -Monitoring Report on Strengthening User Engagement -Overcoming barriers to trust in Crime Statistics Monitoring Briefs Correspondence Issues Log

Knife Crime Statistics

Monitoring Report on Crime Statistics in England and Wales

Earlier reviews of crime statistics Proposal for an integrated information system spanning the criminal justice system, from the initial crime record to subsequent court proceedings and penal treatment (Perks, 1967) Recommendation for victim-focused approach to the recording of crime (Simmons, 2000) Need to improve the provision of local crime data to meet the needs of the public and local agencies (Statistics Commission and Smith reviews, 2006)

Aims of Assessment to determine whether the Code of Practice for Statistics has been complied with to communicate to Parliament and the public the extent of compliance with the Code to help the producers of official statistics to enhance the quality of the statistical service

Elements of Assessment New statutory Code of Practice Self-evaluation evidence from producer teams Views of Users, suppliers and other stakeholders Review of statistical releases and associated documentation

Designation Statistics… Meet identified user needs Are produced, managed and disseminated to high standards Are well explained

Published Assessment Reports Scotland36 Wales16 Northern Ireland15 UK Government Departments66 Office for National Statistics39 Other18 Total190

Number of Requirements by Principle and Protocol; first 179 Assessments

Published Assessment Reports on Crime Statistics 2Recorded Crime in ScotlandScottish Government June Scottish Crime and Justice Survey Scottish Government Sept Crime Statistics in England and Wales Home OfficeApril Statistics on Homicide, Domestic Abuse, Firearm Offences and Firearm Certificates Recorded by the Police in Scotland Scottish Government June 2011

Scope of Assessments Assessment Report Statistical Releases Covered Recorded Crime in Scotland Statistics on Homicide, Domestic Abuse, Firearm Offences and Firearm Certificates Recorded by the Police in Scotland Homicide in Scotland Domestic Abuse Recorded by the Police in Scotland Recorded Crimes and Offences Involving Firearms, Scotland Firearm Certificates Statistics, Scotland Scottish Crime and Justice Survey Scottish Crime and Justice Survey: Main Findings Partner Abuse Sexual Victimisation and Stalking Crime Statistics in England and Wales Crime in England and Wales Quarterly Update Supplementary Volumes 1 to 3 Drug Misuse Declared

Principle 1: Meeting User Needs ReportRequirementsSuggestions Recorded Crime in Scotland Make documentation available on how issues identified through user consultation are prioritised and developed Homicide, Domestic Abuse, firearms etc Publish a plan to document the needs of users and the use made of these statistics Refer to the types of use put forward in the Statistics Authority Monitoring Brief The use made of official statistics Scottish Crime and Justice Survey Agree to publish information on users and user views, including whether the survey meets their needs, in 2010 Publish information about the potential uses of the statistics to encourage wider use of the data

Strengthening User Engagement – Key areas for improvement Better understanding of the use currently made of official statistics and the value to society that flows from that use; Better communication with a wider range of users; and Better exploitation of the existing consultation structures and technologies to ensure that user engagement is effective

Principal 2: Impartiality and Objectivity The authors of the statistical release should prepare their own impartial and objective commentary on the statistics rather than rely on commentary provided by police forces Ensure that all releases of these statistics are accessible via the National Statistics Publication Hub

Protocol 2: Release practices Ensure that government statements on Recorded Crime in Scotland statistics are clearly presented as policy statements (or ministerial statements) and can be readily distinguished from statistical releases Identify the earliest feasible date for publication of Recorded Crime in Scotland Publish records of those granted pre-release access to these statistics in their final form

Principle 4: Sound methods and assured quality Provide users with more information about the methods, procedures and classifications used to collate these statistics and publish more information about the quality of the police statistics Consult with suppliers of the data for the other releases to explore the extent of any differences in recording practices In collaboration with counterparts in the other Devolved Administrations, the UK Government and ONS, promote work to improve the comparability of recorded crime statistics across each of the 4

Protocol 3: The use of administrative sources for statistical purposes ReportRequirements Recorded Crime in Scotland Publish a Statement of Administrative Sources, once central guidance becomes available Homicide, Domestic Abuse, firearms etc Include in its Statement of Administrative Sources the specific arrangements for using police forces’ administrative data for the police statistics with particular reference to arrangements for auditing the quality of the administrative data held by police forces

Recommendation 6, barriers to trust report Publish a description of the steps currently taken I.to ensure that police crime records result from the consistent application of the Counting Rules and II.to quality assure the statistics deriving from those records. It should supplement the steps in (i) as necessary, for example by spot checks or periodic external audit, in order to provide public reassurance of consistency.

Principle 5: Confidentiality ReportRequirements Homicide, Domestic Abuse, firearms etc Prepare written confidentiality protection agreements covering the sharing of homicide data with National Records of Scotland Scottish Crime and Justice Survey Publish the arrangements for protecting confidential Scottish Crime and Justice Survey data

Principle 6: Proportionate burden ReportSuggestion Recorded Crime in Scotland Report annually on the estimated costs to suppliers

Principle 8: Frankness and accessibility ReportSuggestions Recorded Crime in Scotland Strengthen the commentary to analyse statistics from both the SCJS and police recorded crime and to consider their coherence when viewed together Prepare additional commentary on the national (Scottish) situation, and on the policy context, in order to help users’ interpretation of the statistics Make data tables in other formats, for example downloadable Excel files, to encourage analysis and re- use Scottish Crime and Justice Survey Strengthen the commentary about statistics from both the Scottish Crime and Justice Survey and Recorded Crime in Scotland and consider their coherence when viewed together

Recommendation 4, barriers to trust report a conceptual framework for crime and criminal justice data, showing flows through the system, where and how data are captured, and where gaps, discrepancies or discontinuities occur a free-standing guide that explains the strengths and limitations of different types of crime data, the circumstances in which it would be appropriate to use one source rather than another, and the kinds of judgement that need to be made when no single source is ideal guidelines on the presentation and use of crime and criminal justice statistics in government documents and statements advice for the public about the interpretation of performance measures in the criminal justice system. This advice should be made available on all government websites where such data are displayed.

Findings from assessment Better understand and communicate the use made of official statistics Improve the text that accompanies the first release of official statistics Improve the documentation of sources and methods Make better use of existing administrative data for statistical purposes Improve the comparability between some statistics produced by the four administrations

Website UK Statistics Authority