THE BRITISH CRIME SURVEY Update from the Home Office BCS User Group - 11 December 2007

THE BRITISH CRIME SURVEY: PRESENTATION TO THE BCS USER GROUP 11 December 2007 Overview (1): news since last meeting –Home Office published its response to the crime statistics review in July 2007 –Commissioned methodological advice on feasibility of extending the under 16s and communal establishments –Re-tendered the BCS for fieldwork starting April 2008 –Made progress with data archiving initiatives

THE BRITISH CRIME SURVEY: PRESENTATION TO THE BCS USER GROUP 11 December 2007 Overview (2): future plans –Planning the 2008/09 survey –Changes to the sample design –Content of the core survey –Extending survey to under 16s –Time for a change of name?

THE BRITISH CRIME SURVEY: PRESENTATION TO THE BCS USER GROUP 11 December 2007 HO response to crime stats reviews –Published same day as annual crime stats bulletin –Key points as they relate to HO surveys were: –To commission methodological advice on feasibility of extending BCS: to under 16s to those living in group residences –To undertake a regular survey of commercial victims –Establish a standing panel of independent experts to review and comment on methodological and analytic issues –Ensure Ministerial comments on crime statistics are released separately from any press release on the statistics themselves.

THE BRITISH CRIME SURVEY: PRESENTATION TO THE BCS USER GROUP 11 December 2007 Advice on extending the BCS –Commissioned NCSR & IPSOS-MORI (Pickering, Smith et al) –Plan to publish their report in the New Year –Concluded it was feasible to extend the BCS to under 16s and made a number of recommendations about how to do it –But extending the survey to those in communal establishments would be highly problematic and further work was needed

THE BRITISH CRIME SURVEY: PRESENTATION TO THE BCS USER GROUP 11 December 2007 Extending survey to under 16s –A number of alternative sampling strategies considered –Concluded that optimal design was to sample within households interviewed for main BCS –Recommended to restrict survey to those aged –Discussed pros and cons of different interview modes –Highlighted issues to consider when interviewing children

THE BRITISH CRIME SURVEY: PRESENTATION TO THE BCS USER GROUP 11 December 2007 Extending BCS to communal establishments –Drew on work done by ONS –Considered alternative sampling frames and concluded no good sampling frame exists –Proposed ways in which a frame covering most groups could be assembled but noted it would be costly and labour intensive to maintain –Further work including piloting and field trials needed –Given uneven distribution and size of establishments a bespoke study probably more cost effective

THE BRITISH CRIME SURVEY: PRESENTATION TO THE BCS USER GROUP 11 December 2007 Re-tendering the BCS –Findings from methodological work fed into our specification for the next 3 year BCS (2008/09 to 2010/11) –Asked bidders to provide cost options for extending survey to under 16s –A competitive tendering exercise ran over the summer and BMRB successful in retaining contract –Some changes proposed to sample design (outlined by BMRB)

THE BRITISH CRIME SURVEY: PRESENTATION TO THE BCS USER GROUP 11 December 2007 Time for a change of name? –The British Crime Survey no longer covers Britain –Sensible to reflect that in the name of the survey –Options for names: –The Home Office Crime Survey (HOCS) –The English and Welsh Crime Survey (EWCS) –The Crime Survey for England and Wales (CSEW) –The National Crime Survey for England and Wales (NCS) –Any strong views?

Questions ? Comments?