Latest prison population figures for 2023.

This page covers weekly estate summary data. View monthly prison breakdown.

The areas of focus include: Victimisation, Police Activity, Defendants and Court Outcomes, Offender Management, Offender Characteristics, Offence Analysis, and Practitioners.

This is the latest biennial compendium of Statistics on Race and the Criminal Justice System and follows on from its sister publication Statistics on Women and the Criminal Justice System, 2017.

Introduction

This publication compiles statistics from data sources across the Criminal Justice System (CJS), to provide a combined perspective on the typical experiences of different ethnic groups. No causative links can be drawn from these summary statistics. For the majority of the report no controls have been applied for other characteristics of ethnic groups (such as average income, geography, offence mix or offender history), so it is not possible to determine what proportion of differences identified in this report are directly attributable to ethnicity. Differences observed may indicate areas worth further investigation, but should not be taken as evidence of bias or as direct effects of ethnicity.

In general, minority ethnic groups appear to be over-represented at many stages throughout the CJS compared with the White ethnic group. The greatest disparity appears at the point of stop and search, arrests, custodial sentencing and prison population. Among minority ethnic groups, Black individuals were often the most over-represented. Outcomes for minority ethnic children are often more pronounced at various points of the CJS. Differences in outcomes between ethnic groups over time present a mixed picture, with disparity decreasing in some areas are and widening in others.

Key findings

Victims

• The Asian ethnic group had the lowest proportion of both adults (2%) and children (5%) who had experienced personal crime in the last year. In 2018/19, both adults and children from the Asian ethnic group were half as likely to report victimisation when compared to the White ethnic group.
• A higher proportion of Black homicides were against children, 17% of Black victims were 17 or younger, compared to an average of 11% across all ethnicities. Between 2015/16 and 2017/18, Black children made up 20% of all child victims, while Black victims made up 13% of victims across all age groups.

Police Activity

• The proportion of stop and searches conducted on White suspects decreased from 75% in 2014/15 to 59% in 2018/19 and increased for all minority ethnic groups. The largest increases were from 13% to 22% for Black suspects and from 8% to 13% for Asian suspects.
• In the last five years, the proportion of stop and searches involving Black suspects in London increased from 30% to 37%, now equal to the number of White suspects searched. In 2018/19, 48% of all stop and searches (where ethnicity is known) were conducted in London, and increasingly involving a higher proportion of suspects from minority ethnic groups when compared to the rest of England and Wales.
• Black suspects had the highest proportion of arrests that resulted from stop and searches in the latest year, at 20% which has increased from 15% since 2014/15. This is driven by a higher number of stop and searches in London, where resultant arrests accounted for 22% of all arrests, compared to 5% for the rest of England and Wales. For other groups, between 6% and 13% of arrests resulted from stop and searches.
• In 2018/19, two thirds (67%) of children arrested in London were from minority ethnic groups, compared to 21% of children arrested in the rest of England and Wales. Just over half (52%) of adults arrested in London were from minority ethnic groups, compared to 22% of adults arrested in the rest of England and Wales.

Defendants

• In the latest year, the largest fall in the volume of prosecutions and convictions for indictable offences was seen in the Asian group, down by 22% and 20% respectively. Prosecutions and convictions fell by 18% and 16% for Black defendants, by 13% each for White defendants, by 8% and 10% for defendants from Mixed ethnic groups and by 7% and 14% for defendants from Chinese or Other ethnic groups.
• White defendants consistently had the highest conviction ratio for indictable offences over the last 5 years (with the exception of 2015) and was 85% in 2018. The conviction ratios for White, Asian (83%) and Black (81%) defendants have converged with each other over the last 5 years, remained constant for defendants from Mixed ethnic groups (77%) and fallen for Chinese or Other ethnic groups (75%).
• Compared to White defendants (38%), larger proportions of Asian (40%), Mixed ethnicity (45%), Black (46%) and Chinese or Other (46%) defendants were remanded in custody for indictable

The areas of focus include: Victimisation, Police Activity, Defendants and Court Outcomes, Offender Management, Offender Characteristics, Offence Analysis, and Practitioners.

This is the latest biennial compendium of Statistics on Ethnicity and the Criminal Justice System and follows on from its sister publication Statistics on Women and the Criminal Justice System, 2019.

The publication reports statistical information on the representation of black and minority ethnic groups as suspects, offenders and victims within the criminal justice system and on employees within criminal justice agencies.

This publication fulfils a statutory obligation for the Secretary of State to publish, annually, information relating to the criminal justice system with reference to avoiding discrimination on the ground of race.

The bulletin is produced and handled by the ministry’s analytical professionals and production staff. Pre-release access of up to 24 hours is granted to the following persons:

Ministry of Justice: Lord Chancellor and Secretary of State for Justice; Minister of State Criminal Justice; Parliamentary Under-Secretary of State for Justice; Permanent Secretary; Press Office; MoJ Policy Director; Head of Race Confidence and Justice Unit; Race Confidence and Justice Unit; Policy lead for Victims; Policy lead for racist offences and racially or religiously aggravated offences; Policy lead for Cautions; Policy lead for sentencing; and NOMs policy lead for probation and prisons.

Home Office: Home Secretary; Press Office; Statistics Head of Profession; Policy lead for Stop and Account and Stop and Search.

Office of the Attorney General: Attorney General.

CPS: Equality and Diversity Unit Officer.

ACPO: Diversity Business Area Policy Manager.

NPIA: Policy lead for Arrests.

Judiciary: Senior Presiding Judge.

Revision

A revision was made on 20th January 2022 to add the volume of prisoners holding a Gender Recognition Certificate.

Details

The Equality Act 2010 lists 9 Protected Characteristics:

• Age
• Sex
• Race
• Disability
• Sexual Orientation
• Religion or Belief
• Gender Reassignment
• Marriage/Civil Partnership
• Pregnancy/Maternity

This report focuses on those protected characteristics where data are collected, and are of sufficient quality for statistics to be meaningful. In general, this report is limited to analysis on sex, age, race (ethnicity) and religious belief for these reasons. Where data are available for other protected characteristics at sufficient quality and with sufficient coverage to be meaningful, they are also presented and considered.

The report presents some analysis by individual characteristic and is meant to serve as a guide for further research. In many cases, more than one factor (e.g. age and another protected characteristic, criminal history, socio-economic) may have an effect on an outcome.

Pre-release

The HMPPS Offender Equalities Report is produced and handled by the Ministry of Justice’s (MOJ) analytical professionals and production staff. Pre-release access of up to 24 hours is granted to the following persons:

• Assistant Private Secretary x 3
• Chief Financial officer, Ministry of Justice
• Chief Press Officer x 4
• Operational Research Analyst
• Data Manager, Custodial Capacity Management
• Deputy Director , Data and Evidence as a Service: Courts and People
• Deputy Director, Service Improvement Group
• Deputy Head of News
• Deputy Private Secretary x 2
• Director General Probation and Wales
• Director General, PCAG
• Director of Analytical Services
• Director Security, Order & Counter Terrorism
• Divisional Director - Diversity, Inclusion & Wellbeing, Diversity, Inclusion and wellbeing
• Senior Contract Manager, Operations
• Equalities Advisor, Diversity & Inclusion
• Equality Manager, National Probation Service
• Executive Director Public Sector Prisons South
• Executive Director, Strategy, Planning and Performance Directorate
• Executive Officer - Contracts and Offender Equalities, Contracts and Offender Equalities Statistics
• Group Reducing Reoffending Lead
• Head of Contracts and Offender Equalities, Contracts and Offender Equalities Statistics
• Head of Belonging, Wellbeing and Inclusion
• Head of Contract Management – Electronic Monitoring
• Head of Cross-Cutting Performance
• Head of Electronic Monitoring Operations
• Head of Equalities and Lammy Equalities
• Head of Health and Justice Partnership Policy, Offender Health in the Community
• Head of HMPPS Performance - Data and Evidence as a service
• Head of HMPPS probation equalities
• Head of HMPPS Women’s Team
• Head of HR ARM in HR Analysis, Reporting and Modelling
• Head of News, External Communication Deputy Director, Head of News, Ministry of Justice
• Head of Prison Diversity and Inclusion
• Head of Prison Safety and Security Statistics
• Head of Regime and Operational Policy Team
• Head of Security Procedures Team
• Head of Service Improvement - Prisons
• Head of Special Projects, Probation and Wales
• Head of Transgender Operational Framework
• HMT, MfE Private Office
• Interim Director General for the Policy and Strategy Group.
• Interim Permanent Secretary, Ministry of Justice
• Interim Private Secreatary to the Minister for Women and Equalities
• Joint Acting Head of Profession (Statistics)
• Joint Deputy Head of Operational Policy Team
• Lead Psychologist, North East
• Operations Manager
• Permanent Secretary office
• Policy Advisor x 5
• Policy official, Operational Services and Interventions
• Press Officer, Ministry of Justice
• Prison Group Director, London Prison Group
• Prison Safety and Security Statistics
• Prisons Group Director
• Prisons Statistics Team Leader, Prisons team
• Private Secretary x 5
• Quality and Effectiveness Lead
• Senior Policy Advisor x 2
• Senior Press Officer x 3
• Senior Principal Research Officer
• Senior Statistical Officer
• Special Adviser GEO
• Team Leader - Probation, ReoffendingStatistics

The Equality Act 2010 lists 9 Protected Characteristics:

• Age,
• Sex
• Race
• Disability
• Sexual Orientation
• Religion or Belief
• Gender Reassignment
• Marriage/Civil Partnership
• Pregnancy/Maternity

This report focuses on those protected characteristics where data are collected, and are of sufficient quality for statistics to be meaningful. In general, this report is limited to analysis on sex, age, race (ethnicity) and religious belief for these reasons. Where data are available for other protected characteristics at sufficient quality and with sufficient coverage to be meaningful, they are also presented and considered.

The report presents some analysis by individual characteristic and is meant to serve as a guide for further research. In many cases, more than one factor (e.g. age and another protected characteristic, criminal history, socio-economic) may have an effect on an outcome.

Pre-release list

The HMPPS Annual Digest is produced and handled by the Ministry of Justice’s (MOJ) analytical professionals and production staff. Pre-release access of up to 24 hours is granted to the following persons:

Ministry of Justice

• Director General, Probation
• Interim Permanent Secretary, Ministry of Justice
• Chief Financial officer, Ministry of Justice
• Director General, Prisons
• Director, Analytical Services
• Interim Director General for the Policy and Strategy Group.
• Deputy Director, Head of Prison and Probation Analytical Services
• Head of Custodial Performance
• Director – Access to Justice Policy
• Head of HMPPS HR Corporate Statistics
• Head of HMPPS Operational analysis
• Head of HR Analysis, Reporting and Modelling
• Head of prison, probation and reoffending statistics
• Joint Acting Head of Profession (Statistics)
• Deputy Director, Youth Justic Reform Policy
• Divisional Director - Diversity, Inclusion & Wellbeing, Diversity, Inclusion and wellbeing
• Lord Chancellor and Secretary of State
• Parliamentary Under Secretary of State, Minister for Prisons and Rehabilitation
• Parliamentary Under Secretary of State, Minister for Victims, Youth and Family Justice
• Permanent Secretary office
• Head of News, External Communication Deputy Director, Head of News, Ministry of Justice
• Press officer x 8
• Private secretaries x 11
• Special advisor
• Team Leader - Probation, Reoffending Statistics
• Criminal Justice Outcomes and Equalities
• Prisons Statistics Team Leader, Prisons team
• Head of Contracts and Offender Equalities, Contracts and Offender Equalities Statistics
• Statisticians x 5
• Policy Officer, Vulnerable Offenders team
• Policy Officer, Vulnerable Offenders team
• Joint Deputy Head of Operational Policy Team, Operational Policy: System Delivery and Reform
• Policy Advisor, ROTL and HDC
• Strategic Review Lead, Intervention Services
• Policy Advisor, Prison Education policy
• Policy Advisor, Policy & Communications

HM Prison and Probation Service (HMPPS)

• Chief Executive Officer, HMPPS
• Executive Director, Strategy, Planning and Performance Directorate
• Director Security, Order & Counter Terrorism
• Executive Director Public Sector Prisons South
• Executive Director of Safety and Rehabilitation
• Senior business manager Prisons, CEO office, HMPPS
• Head of EM Contract Management
• EM Contract Management
• Head of Electronic Monitoring operations and policy
• Deputy Director, Interventions and Operational Services
• Head of Equalities and Lammy Equalities
• Policy Official: Licence recalls
• Head of HMPPS probation equalities
• Head of Interventions Services
• Senior Women’s Policy Manager
• Head of HMPPS Womans team
• Mother and Baby units, Policy officer
• Quality and Effectiveness lead, HMPPS
• HMPPS Diversity and Inclusion
• Head of Prison Diversity and Inclusion
• Prison Groups director
• HMPPS Senior Diversity and Inclusion manager
• Head of Security Procedures team
• Governing Governor

Other government departments

• Government Equalities Office (Cabinet office)
• Private Secretary to Baroness Berridge
• Private Secretary to Kemi Badenoch
• Chief Press Officer, Governme

Monthly statistics on the population in custody of children and young people within secure children’s homes (SCH) / Oasis Restore Secure School (ORSS), secure training centres (STCs) and young offender institutions (YOIs).

This publication includes data on children and young people aged 10 to 18+ years in the children and young person secure estate.

Data are provided on a trend basis dating back to 2000 to 2001 and 2015 to 2016 onwards for more detailed data.

The publication contains more detailed information on the make-up of the custody population by ethnicity, sex, age, religious belief, legal basis, offence group, sector type, region of establishment, region of Youth Justice Service and distance from home.