Statistics on prisons

* New * The prison population has exceeded previous record levels.

In February 2026 (up until the morning of Sunday 1st March 2026):

• the population increased by 55 to 8,312
• 2,189 were on remand: 1,787 (21%) untried & 402 (5%) awaiting sentence. 6,123 (74%) were serving a sentence.
• 67% of arrivals were untried (603 of 902), 19% awaiting sentence (168) and 15% sentenced (131)

Chart 15: Prison populations (total and remand), 2019 to 1st March 2026

The prison population is high, reaching a new highest recorded level of 8,441 on the morning of 11th November 2025.

Measures taken to manage prison population levels include the emergency early release (EER) of eligible short sentenced prisoners (those serving an overall sentence of less than 4 years) in summer 2024, and new legislation to amend the release point of short sentenced prisoners in late 2024. The revised release point (from 50% to 40%) commenced in February 2025. A further programme of emergency early release (EER) commenced in November 2025.

Overall sentence lengths

* New * Changes occurring in the sentenced prison population vary by sentence length banding, as shown in the chart below.

Chart 16: Prison populations by overall sentence bands, 26th March 2020 to 1st March 2026

The populations serving short sentences (less than 4 years overall) fell substantially and rapidly during the COVID-19 pandemic, whereas populations serving long (4+ years) and indeterminate (order for lifelong restriction (OLR) and life) sentences remained at similar levels to pre-pandemic.

The population serving overall sentences of less than or equal to one year has fluctuated since the pandemic but increased overall across 2023 and early 2024. It reduced sharply during EER in summer 2024 but recovered quickly thereafter. However in late 2024 this group declined and remained at a further reduced level following commencement of the revised release point for short sentenced prisoners (40%) in 2025. Following commencement of the EER programme in November 2025, this population further reduced.  While the group remains at a lower level, it has increased in early 2026.

The population serving overall sentences of between 1 and 4 years had been declining since the pandemic. However it increased across 2023 and early 2024. During EER in summer 2024 it decreased sharply but recovered quickly thereafter, stabilising at a similar level to pre-EER until the commencement of the revised release point for short sentenced prisoners (40%) in early 2025. There had been a small increase in this population, followed by a period of relative stability in summer and autumn 2025. Following commencement of the EER programme in November 2025, there has been a reduction in this population.

The population serving long sentences (4+ years) has been increasing since early 2022 (+41% from 2,090 on 1st January 2022 to 2,956 on 1st March 2026). The population serving indeterminate sentences has been stable overall over the same period, although small changes have occurred within this group – the number serving life sentences has declined, while the number serving OLR sentences has increased.

While recent changes in prison population levels have been largely driven by changes in the sentenced population, the remand population remains high. The remand population reached its lowest point of 1,114 on 24th April 2020, but grew rapidly thereafter to record high levels. It has continued to fluctuate at a high level to date. On 14th May 2024 the remand population reached a peak of 2,360. People on remand are required by law to be housed separately from sentenced prisoners.

Time on Remand to Date

* New * Among the 2189 people on remand as of the morning of Sunday 1st March 2026 , the median continuous time spent with this status to date was 83 days.

Chart 17: Banded continuous time on remand to date, percentage of remand population

Note: The remand population includes individuals whose trial has commenced but not concluded, as well as those awaiting commencement of a trial. As a result, the figures referenced above reflect only that an individual has held the same status for an extended period, but do not reflect the relationship between these times on remand and the ongoing court procedure(s) to which they relate.

Deaths in Prison Custody

* New * There were 399 deaths in prison custody between the financial years 2012-13 and 2023-24. The annual number of deaths occurring in prison custody fluctuated between 2012-13 and 2023-24, but there has been a general upward trend. Of these deaths: 115 were due to probable suicide, 83 were due to diseases of the circulatory system, and 62 were as a result of drug misuse. There was a total of 17 deaths that involved COVID-19.

Chart 18: Number of deaths in prison custody recorded in each financial year, 2012-13 to 2023-24

* New * Using standardised mortality ratios (SMRs) has demonstrated that the risk of death in the male prison population has been statistically significantly lower than in the male general population of Scotland in each year between 2012-13 and 2023-24. In 2021-22 and 2023-24 the risk is closer to that of the general population, but remains statistically significantly lower.

* New * The risk of male probable suicide deaths in prison custody was statistically similar to the male general population across the rolling periods 2012-15 to 2018-21, but in the rolling periods 2019-22, 2020-23 and 2021-24, the risk of male probable suicide deaths in prison custody was statistically significantly higher than the general population.

* New * The risk of male drug misuse deaths in prison custody was statistically significantly lower than in the general population for the periods 2012-15 to 2019-2022. However, for the period 2020-2023 and 2021-2024 the risk of male drug misuse deaths in the prison population is statistically similar to the general male population.