Press Statement

Preasráiteas

19 November 2021

Go to release: Probation Re-offending Statistics 2017

The Central Statistics Office (CSO) has today (19 November 2021) published the results of its most recent estimates of probation re-offending.

Commenting on the release, Felix Coleman, Statistician, said: “Probation re-offending estimates are calculated using data provided by the Irish Probation Service and An Garda Síochána's PULSE reporting system. A methodological adjustment in the estimates for 2017 has been made that provides better consistency with similar changes to prison re-offending estimates published in June this year. The inclusion of all Road and Traffic related court convicted incidents as re-offending indicators introduces greater coverage in the analysis of probation re-offending. This publication also introduces additional analysis of the probation re-offending population:

• An indicator of the level of significance of probation re-offending behaviour with statistics that show whether a re-offence received a custodial or non-custodial sanction
• Greater details of the type and levels of re-offences committed by young adults"

Analysing the data, Felix Coleman, further commented: "There has been a small decrease in the one-year probation re-offending rate between 2016 and 2017 from 31% to 29%. The data from 2017 indicates that younger age groups of probationers continue to be much more likely to re-offend with almost 42% of probationers aged less than 18 at the time of receiving a probation sanction re-offending. In contrast, indicators show that just 8% of probationers who were over 65 re-offended.

Almost half (43%) of all re-offences by adults under 25 are carried out in two offence categories, public order (22%) and road and traffic offences (21%). Controlled drug (14%) and theft related offences (14%) accounts for more than a quarter of the remaining re-offending offence types.

There is negligible difference in the overall re-offending rates between males and females. Although most individuals who received probation orders in 2017 were male (87%), slightly more males re-offended (28%) than females (27%)."

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