Criminal justice statistics infographic
Source: data.gov.uk (2018-05-25)

Criminal Justice Statistics. The reports presents the main trends on the latest 12 months of activity in the criminal justice system (CJS) for England and Wales. For each process a brief description of the function is included with an explanation of some of the main procedures involved.

0%
10%
20%
30%
40%
50%
60%
70%
80%
Committed for 
trial/sentence
Acquitted
Failed to appear
Other sentence
Immediate custody
Outcomes for defendants on custodial remand
Crown Court
Magistrates’ court
Change in the number of defendants prosecuted (2006-2016)
Longer suspended 
sentences without 
requirements were 
introduced
-30%
-25%
-20%
-15%
-10%
-5%
0%
All
Indictable
only
Triable
either way
Summary
non-motoring
Summary
motoring
25,000
in 2016
 
583,000
in 2016
580,000
in 2016
268,000
in 2016
1,456,000
in 2016
0
500,000
1,000,000
1,500,000
2,000,000
2006
2007
2008
2009
2010
2011
2012
2013
2014
2015
2016
Number of defendants prosecuted
Number of out of court disposals
51,700
Summary 
offences
Offenders given cautions, 2016
Overview
In the past decade, the total number of people and companies dealt with by the 
criminal justice system has decreased. The number of prosecutions has decreased 
by 2% in the latest year, whereas the number given out of court disposals (including 
community resolutions from 2015) decreased by 14%.
Prosecutions and convictions
Over the past decade, the number of defendants prosecuted has decreased, 
and the composition of prosecutions at the magistrates’ court has changed, 
with summary non-motoring decreasing less than other offence types:	
Out of court disposals
The overall cautioning rate in 2016 was 12%, declining from a peak of 31% in 2007.
The use of PNDs has decreased year on year since their peak in 2007.
Penalty Notices for Disorder, 2016
1.24 million offenders received sentences 
at courts in England and Wales in 2016. 
Most were fines:
Average custodial sentence 
length has increased by:
4,200
13,900
7,800
6,600
2,300
1,100
Drunk and 
disorderly
Possession of 
cannabis
Causing 
harassment, 
alarm or 
distress
Theft (retail 
under £100)
Other higher tier 
offences (£90)
Other lower tier 
offences (£60)
16,200
19,500
10,300
Theft 
offences
Drug 
offences
Other indictable 
offences
5,600
Violence 
against the 
person
74%
Fines
26%
Other 
sentences
0
50
100
150
200
250
2006
2007
2008
2009
2010
2011
2012
2013
2014
2015
2016
Adults
Juveniles
The rate of decline in ﬁrst time entrants between adults and juveniles is slowing down:
Number of ﬁrst time entrants (thousands)
Sentencing
Criminal Justice 
Statistics
England and Wales, 2016
Criminal histories
The number of first time entrants 
to the Criminal Justice System fell 
by 59% between 2006 and 2016.
Remands
Most people remanded in custody at the Crown Court were later sentenced to 
immediate custody, and most remanded in custody at the magistrates’ court were 
then committed for trial or sentence at the Crown Court:
since 2006, to 16.4 
months in 2016.
4 
months
…and the number of juveniles convicted 
has fallen much more steeply than adults:
Adults 
9%
Juveniles 
72% 
The largest increases between 2015 
and 2016 was in Vehicle registration 
licence offences up by:
 3% 
Motoring offences
The number of defendants prosecuted 
for motoring offences has increased by:


between 2015 and 2016.
59%
21%
0%
3%
6%
9%
12%
15%
2006
2007
2008
2009
2010
2011
2012
2013
2014
2015
2016
Sentenced (%)
Community sentence 
Suspended sentence 
Use of community sentences has decreased and suspended sentences have 
become more prevalent: