New stats reveal rise in Ayrshire domestic abuse reports
Published 25 May 2020
Almost 100 domestic abuse offences have been recorded in Ayrshire following the introduction last year of the Domestic Abuse (Scotland) Act 2018.
The new Act was introduced on 1 April 2019 and created a single offence covering the full range of abusive behaviours including physical, psychological, financial and sexual abuse.There were 99 offences recorded across Ayrshire in 2019/20 and of these, 92 involved female victims and seven male.
The statistics come as Police Scotland published its Performance Report, introduced by Deputy Chief Constable Fiona Taylor, and Quarter 4 Management Information. They show that 1,681 offences were recorded in the first year of the Act being introduced. A total of 1,158 offences were detected in that period.
The figures also reveal that attempted murder has halved in Ayrshire in the last year and that culpable homicides are also down compared with 2018/19.
Chief Superintendent Faroque Hussain, divisional commander of Ayrshire, said: “These year-end figures reflect a rise in confidence in our communities coming forward to report crime. They demonstrate the strength of our local engagement and highlight the areas where we need to consider a more bespoke and proactive response.
“Police Scotland officers are in our local communities every day building trust, strengthening partnerships and protecting vulnerable people from harm. Officers also have the direct support and expertise of national specialist divisions like our domestic abuse unit and child protection unit.
“DCC Taylor said today that we remain here to help and support our fellow citizens to keep them safe in all aspects of their lives. I would like to underpin that message now more than ever as we navigate our way through the restrictions which were introduced to mitigate the public health crisis.
“We know that private and virtual spaces are not safe places for everyone and I would appeal to anyone who feels that they or someone they know might be at risk, to please get in touch.”Please note, the Q4 report contains Management Information figures and these are not official statistics.
