Domestic abuse incidents rise by one per cent

Levels of domestic abuse recorded by the police in Scotland have remained relatively stable since 2011-12, with around 58.000 to 60,000 incidents a year.

The police recorded 59,541 incidents of domestic abuse in 2017-18, an increase of one per cent compared to the previous year.

In 2017-18, 44 per cent of incidents of domestic abuse recorded by the police resulted in at least one crime or offence being committed.

The crime or offence that was most frequently recorded was common assault (accounting for 37 per cent of all crimes and offences recorded). This was followed by breach of the peace etc. which accounted for 31 per cent of crimes and offences.

Where gender information was recorded, around four in every five incidents of domestic abuse in 2017-18 had a female victim and a male accused. This proportion has remained very stable since 2011-12.

In 2017-18, the 26-30 years old age group has the highest rate for both victims (272 incidents recorded per 10,000 population) and accused (246 incidents recorded per 10,000 population).

Incidents of domestic abuse recorded by the police are more common at weekends with 35 per cent of all incidents in 2017-18 occurring on a Saturday or Sunday.

In 2017-18, 88 per cent of all incidents of domestic abuse occurred in a home or dwelling.