Official Statistics
The Statistics & Registration Service Act 2007 was introduced on 1st April 2008 with the aim of enhancing levels of public confidence in official statistics. As a result the UK Statistics Authority was formed as an independent, non-ministerial government department directly accountable to Parliament. Its statutory objective is to promote and safeguard the production and publication of official statistics that serve the public good.
The provisions of the Statistics & Registration Service Act also apply to Northern Ireland as do the powers of the UK Statistics Authority. In January 2009 the UK Statistics Authority published the Code of Practice for Official Statistics. The Code builds on, and supersedes, the former National Statistics Code of Practice. Official Statistics that comply with the Code are designated as National Statistics. Compliance with the Code is a statutory requirement on bodies that produce statistics that have already been designated as National Statistics.
The UK Statistics Authority will monitor the production and publication of official statistics in Northern Ireland and report any concerns to those responsible for them. Official Statistics which Northern Ireland Departments wish to see assigned as National Statistics will be assessed against the new Code of Practice for Official Statistics.
National Statistics
National Statistics stand for relevance, quality, integrity and freedom from political interference. They provide an up-to-date, comprehensive and meaningful description of the UK´s economy and society. National Statistics covers government data produced to the high professional principles and standards set out in the Code of Practice for Official Statistics.
Official Statistics & PSNI
The Police Service of Northern Ireland is listed in The Official Statistics Order 2009 as a producer of official statistics and is therefore subject to the Statistics & Registration Act 2007. Statisticians from the Northern Ireland Statistics & Research Agency are seconded to the PSNI and are responsible for ensuring that the statistics they produce comply with the Code of Practice for Official Statistics.
The PSNI currently has 3 National Statistics (awaiting assessment by the UK Statistics Authority). Quality reports, based around the nine dimensions of the European Statistical System quality framework, have been compiled for each of these National Statistics Outputs and are available below:
1. Recorded crime and detection statistics quality report (PDF, 141.0 KB)
2. Injury road traffic collision statistics quality report (PDF, 132.6 KB)
3. Statistics on the security situation quality report (PDF, 128.4 KB)
Please click on the relevant sections below for further information
• Pre-release access to Official Statistics (PDF, 35.7 KB)
• PSNI pre release access compliance statement (PDF, 100.7 KB)
• Revisions statement (PDF, 20.1 KB)
• Code of practice for Official Statistics (PDF, 358.3 KB)
• Statement of PSNI administrative sources (PDF, 219.0 KB)
• Confidentiality protection arrangements (PDF, 88.5 KB)
• PSNI user engagement strategy (PDF, 133.6 KB)
User Consultation
The PSNI is required under Principle 1 (Meeting user needs) of the Code of Practice for Official Statistics, to publish information about users’ experiences of statistical services, data quality and the format and timing of reports. Any interaction with key users of PSNI statistics usually falls into one of the three groups highlighted below:
i) Engagement with users through regular user group meetings or correspondence– these are held with key users throughout the year and normally involve PSNI statisticians and policy & statistical colleagues in other NI government departments or in other criminal justice agencies but do also involve external interest groups.
• Injury road traffic collision statistics consultations and meetings (PDF, 17.2 KB)
• Security statistics consultations and meetings (PDF, 18.9 KB)
ii) User Surveys – we occasionally survey the key users of our statistics to ascertain what they think about the service they receive. The most recent User Survey was conducted in October/November 2011.
• November 2011 user survey results (PDF, 241.1 KB)
iii) Consultation exercises regarding proposed changes to statistical outputs or processes – this is where a wide range of users are consulted by PSNI Statistics Branch in advance of any planned changes to the statistics we report on.
• Consultation on a revised framework for recorded crime outcomes in Northern Ireland (PDF, 171.5 KB)
• Home Office proposed changes to recorded crime classifications and presentation of recorded crime statistics (November 2011) (PDF, 143.4 KB) Effect of Home Office proposed changes to PSNI Statistics (November 2011) (PDF, 143.4 KB)
• Crime recording realignment (December 2010) (PDF, 189.6 KB)
User Feedback
Comments and feedback from consultations with users, from the user satisfaction survey and from general feedback received are shown below. Any action taken or changes being considered as a result of this feedback are also outlined in these documents, which will be updated and reviewed on an ongoing basis.
• Recorded crime, domestic & hate motivations and anti social behaviour statistics (PDF, 73.5 KB)
• Injury road traffic collision statistics (PDF, 27.0 KB)
