Summary

Description

This statistical bulletin gives the latest comparative results of the criminal history of offenders born in selected weeks in 1953, 1958, 1963, 1968, 1973, 1978, 1983, 1988. The bulletin includes three parts: • participation of the general population in offending which covers analysis of the criminal behaviour of offenders by gender, including the population with a conviction, offenders desisting, types of offence at first court appearance, population convicted by type of offence and custodial sentence; • frequency of offending by gender which focuses on analysing the distribution of court appearances, subsequent court appearance by age, probability of further court appearances, length of criminal career; distribution of custodial court appearance throughout the convicted population; • discussion on estimating the proportion of the population under 53 years old with at least one conviction in England and Wales. Why are we publishing it The current publication is the sixth update of the series of studies on criminal career of offenders since it first published on 3 April 1985 by the Home Office. The last update was on 21 March 2001. The publication presents an insight into the criminal careers of offenders, especially prolific offenders. The analyses of criminal history published in the statistical bulletin are based on data from the Offenders Index database which has accumulated data of court appearances of offenders since the early 1960s and is the only data source data able to provide a continuous picture of offending in England and Wales from the 1960s to the present. The publication will, for the first time, give estimates of the proportion of the population under 53 years old in England and Wales with a criminal record; we have at times been asked for this by ministers, senior officials and the members of the public. Source agency: Justice Designation: Official Statistics not designated as National Statistics Language: English Alternative title: Criminal careers of those born between 1953 and 1988