Crimes recorded by the police in Scotland: record highs and lows

The extremes of crimes recorded by the police in scotland as published by Scottish Government, across the 10 periods held here (Year ending March 2017 to Year ending March 2026). Each record is a published figure, not a computed one, and the scope is this series — not “ever”.

The latest figure, 315,357 in Year ending March 2026, is the highest in the whole published series of 10 periods. The rule: a period counts as beaten only when its figure is strictly below the latest, and the claim is only made when it reaches back at least five years.

Highest published

315,357Year ending March 2026

Lowest published

286,464Year ending March 2022

The full series

Crimes recorded by the police in Scotland: Year ending March 2017 to Year ending March 2026ConservativeConservativeConservativeConservativeConservativeLabourLabour0100k200k300k20182020202220242026Year ending March 2017: 298,154 crimes · published 23 June 2026Year ending March 2018: 304,215 crimes · published 23 June 2026Year ending March 2019: 305,699 crimes · published 23 June 2026Year ending March 2020: 305,220 crimes · published 23 June 2026Year ending March 2021: 299,452 crimes · published 23 June 2026Year ending March 2022: 286,464 crimes · published 23 June 2026Year ending March 2023: 289,351 crimes · published 23 June 2026Year ending March 2024: 299,790 crimes · published 23 June 2026Year ending March 2025: 299,111 crimes · published 23 June 2026Year ending March 2026: 315,357 crimes · published 23 June 2026

Published valueProvisional or revisedLatestShaded bands: governments (see labels)Hover or use arrow keys to read a value

What a record here is, and is not

A record is the extreme of the periods this site holds for the current series, at each period’s newest published release. Earlier series measured under different methods are not compared against it. Money is in cash terms: a record set years ago stands against the money of its own year.