Domestic abuse: statistics recorded by the police in Scotland - 2015/16

Key Points

• In 2015-16 there were 58,104 incidents of domestic abuse recorded by the police in Scotland, a decrease of 3.0% from 2014-15 and the lowest number recorded since 2010-11 when 55,698 incidents were recorded.
• In 2015-16, 51% of incidents of domestic abuse recorded by the police in Scotland included the recording of at least one crime or offence.
• There were 108 incidents of domestic abuse recorded by the police in Scotland per 10,000 population in 2015-16. At a local authority level, Dundee City (160) and West Dunbartonshire (152) recorded the highest incident rates per 10,000 population. Aberdeenshire (51) and East Renfrewshire (53) recorded the lowest rates per 10,000 population.
• Where gender information was recorded, 79% of all incidents of domestic abuse in 2015-16 had a female victim and a male accused. This percentage share has fallen from 87% in 2006-07.
• The proportion of incidents with a male victim and a female accused (where gender was recorded) has increased from 11% in 2006-07 to 18% in 2015-16.
• In 2015-16, the 26-30 years old age group has the highest incident rate for both victims (283 incidents recorded per 10,000 population) and those accused (272 incidents recorded per 10,000 population).
• Incidents of domestic abuse recorded by the police are more common at weekends with 36% of all incidents in 2015-16 occurring on a Saturday or Sunday.
• In 2015-16, 87% of all incidents of domestic abuse occurred in a home or dwelling.