Community payback orders bringing results, figures show
Older people, and those in employment, are more likely to complete their community payback orders, but overall rates are better than for the former community service, official figures show.
The report, Criminal justice social work statistics in Scotland: 2016-17, published today by Scotland’s Chief Statistician, reveals that a total of 20,500 social work orders were issued in 2016-17, similar to the figure for the previous five years. The vast majority of those (19,100) were community payback orders.
Most community payback orders (76%) included a requirement for unpaid work or other activity, and 53% included offender supervision.
The successful completion rate was 67%, again around the level observed over the past six years, and consistently higher than the completion rates for the orders they replaced. However the rate varied from 60% for 16-17 year olds and 62% for those aged 18-20, to 77% for the over 40s.
In addition, those in employment (81%) were substantially more likely to complete than those unemployed or economically inactive (62%).
There were 480 drug treatment and testing orders issued in 2016-17, and numbers have been decreasing since the 639 issued in 2012-13.
Almost 900 fiscal work orders – offers of unpaid work orders as an alternative to prosecution – were issued in 2016-17, 76% more than the previous year.