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Rural Crime in Scotland: Insights from Surveys & Statistics

Explore findings on rural crime in Scotland from the Scottish Crime Survey and Neighbourhood Statistics. Understand victim profiles, reporting rates, and community safety concerns.

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Rural Crime in Scotland: Insights from Surveys & Statistics

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  1. Rural crime in Scotland: What can we learn from the Scottish Crime Survey and Scottish Neighbourhood Statistics? Susan McVie University of Edinburgh

  2. Structure • Definition of terms • About the Scottish Crime Survey • Profile of rural crime • Characteristics of victims • Issues for rural victims • Relationships with the police • About Scottish Neighbourhood Statistics • Standard and advanced reports • Thematic maps and data downloads

  3. Definition of Rural Urban = Populations over 10,000 Accessible rural = Populations smaller than 10,000 but within 30 minute drive of larger settlement Remote rural = Populations smaller than 10,000 and more than 30 minute drive of larger settlement

  4. Definition of Rural Crime • Crime that happens in rural areas • Crimes that are more specific/common to rural areas e.g. wildlife crime

  5. The Scottish Crime Survey • National survey of households in Scotland • One adult per household, sample=5000 • Eight sweeps since 1982, every 3-4 years • Main aims are: • Provide a comparative measure of crime to police statistics • Examine trends in extent & nature of crime • Study risks of victimisation • Collect information on crime-related issues, such as concern about crime and attitudes to the police.

  6. Limitations of the survey • Not all crime types are included • Not all victims are included • Some sample bias can’t be corrected • Small samples make low level analysis problematic e.g. at police force area level • BUT the new Scottish Crime and Justice Survey 2008 has improved design and sample size

  7. Estimated number of crimes in Scotland 2005/06

  8. Incidence of crime (i.e. number of crimes per victim)

  9. Reporting to the police • Crimes in rural areas slightly more likely overall to be reported to the police than crimes in urban areas (39% vs 35%) • This is particularly the case for vehicle thefts and property vandalism • The main reasons for reporting crimes are: • It’s the right thing to do/duty to report • Hope the offender gets caught/punished • Wish to avoid the crime happening again/to others • Insurance claim or desire to recover property • No difference between urban and rural areas

  10. Age/sex profile of victims • No sex difference overall between victims and non-victims in urban or rural areas (approx 50:50) • The average age of victims in urban and rural areas was the same (age 39), although rural respondents were slightly older overall • Looking at violent crimes in particular: • Males are more likely to be victims in both urban and rural areas, but the gender gap is narrower in rural areas • Males aged 16-24 made up one third of victims in urban areas, but one quarter of victims in rural areas • Older males (45-59) made up a higher proportion of violence victims in rural areas than in urban areas • Victims of violence in rural areas were about 5 years older, on average, than urban victims • Female victims were slightly older than male victims in both urban and rural areas

  11. Anxieties about crime • Most victims of crime in both urban and rural areas report feeling ‘annoyed’ and ‘angry’ about their experience. • Less than 1 in 10 report ‘fear’. • Those in remote rural areas are most likely to feel safe walking alone in their communities at night, urban residents feel least safe • Most rural respondents also report feeling least worried about the possibility of being victimised in a range of ways • BUT victims of crime in remote rural areas are most worried about being victimised again, particularly in relation to vehicle theft and vandalism

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