Policing needs of communities increasing as Covid restrictions ease
The policing needs of communities increased during the first quarter of 2021-22 compared to the same period last year, Police Scotland’s latest Performance Report shows.
Overall reported violent crime, fatal road traffic collisions and 999 calls during the period were all significantly higher than between April and June 2020, when the first lockdown had been recently introduced and during which some of the strictest Covid measures were in place.
The reporting period also noted the highest number of reported sexual crimes and detections over the last six years, with increases in non-recent crime and recent crime driving the overall rise.
Meanwhile, anti-social behaviour, disorder, public nuisance, neighbour disputes and noise complaints all saw substantial reductions compared to the first lockdown period.
Deputy Chief Constable Fiona Taylor QPM said: “While restrictions relating to the pandemic continue to have an impact on the policing needs of our communities, the effect is different compared to the same period last year, when the first lockdown had only recently been introduced and the most stringent measures were in place.
“While overall reported violent crime remains slightly below the five-year average, it has increased significantly compared to the same period last year, during which we saw substantial reductions on historic figures.
“Despite significant increases, we know sexual offending remains under-reported and I encourage victims to come forward. As restrictions, particularly relating to increased social interactions, continue to ease it is anticipated that reports of sexual crime will continue to rise.”
Reported sexual crimes increased by 24.3% when compared to last year (2,992 to 3,720) and by 17.9% compared to the five-year average. The number of detections of such crimes also increased, up 27.3% compared to last year (1,706 to 2,171) and 16.4% on the five-year average.
Overall reported violent crime was up 12.8% year on year (13,951 to 15,743), but down 2.1% on the five-year average. The number of people killed in road traffic collisions rose to 24, up from 14 during the same period last year, but down around a third on the five-year average.
Public nuisance incidents reduced by 47.8% year-on-year (from 61,188 to 31,964), neighbour disputes fell by 20.6% (9,413 to 7,473) and noise complaints dropped 25.6% (18,632 to 13,856).
Reported anti-social behaviour incidents fell 28% (132,012 to 95,037) and complaints of disorder reduced by a third (104,170 to 69,651).
During the quarter, Police Scotland received 174,531 emergency 999 calls, up 22.9% on the same period last year (141,960) with an average call answer time of 6 seconds. The number of 101 calls received was 491,976, down 5.8% on the same period last year (522,261) and with an average call answer time of 3 minutes 25 seconds.
DCC Taylor added: “We have seen an increase in the total number of calls we handle, with a notable increase in 999 contacts. Maintaining 999 answer call times against this increase has resulted in longer answer periods for 101 contacts.
“I am grateful to the dedicated officers and staff within our Contact, Command and Control (C3) Division who have worked throughout the pandemic and continue to prioritise emergency calls, to ensure most vulnerable and at risk get the help they need and deserve.”
The Performance Report will be presented at the Scottish Police Authority Policing Performance Committee on Wednesday, 1 September.
The reports can be found on the Our Performance section of the Police Scotland website here https://www.scotland.police.uk/about-us/our-performance/
