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FAT CAT STATS

	Most criminal legal aid firms are far from being fat cats. The statistics for criminal legal aid on this page show the state of the industry from 2011 to 2019. Its not a pretty sight.
	There is a huge amount of data. It may take while to load so please be patient... Its only a small subsection of the data we hold. We will be updating the page soon but if you spot an error or want a particular view of the data do please get in touch. Figures are exclusive of VAT and do not include disbursements.

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Our good friends at No Comment, the biggest police station agency in the country, provided us with the tools, graphs and coding skills to make the stats easier to understand. There is a lot of info so it can take a while to load. Please be patient! No Comment covers every police station in England & Wales.

YEAR

2011/12

2012/13

2013/14

2014/15

2015/16

2016/17

2017/18

2018/19

2019/20

2020/21

2021/22

2022/23

2023/24

TOTAL

VOLUME

£ CHANGE %

VOLUME %

222

police...

YEAR

2011/12

2012/13

2013/14

2014/15

2015/16

2016/17

2017/18

2018/19

2019/20

2020/21

2021/22

2022/23

2023/24

VOLUME

TOTAL

The above chart shows annual income for police station attendances. The table shows the income and volume figures. The percentage is the proportion of police station income to all criminal legal aid income.

POLICE ATTENDANCES ARE DOWN

SPOTLIGHT ON POLICE STATION ATTENDANCES

Police Station Volumes Falling
Police station attendances are down. This is largely in line with the drop in arrests. 2007/08 is anomalous; attendances dropped dramatically but its easy to see why. It was the year the DSCC was introduced and the Carter Reforms came into force. The introduction of fixed fees led to solicitors taking unprecedented insdustrial action. Note: use the white button above to go the next slide...

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NUMBER CRUNCHING

£411

In 2002/03 the average police station attendance fee was £265.92. If there had been no cuts and rates had kept pace with inflation the fee would now average £411.26; around double the current rate.

POLICE STATION RATES...

The real terms figures are calculated using the Bank of England retail price index.

AVERAGE POLICE STATION ATTENDANCE RATES...

The real terms figures are calculated using the Bank of England retail price index.

THE POLICE IN NUMBERS

Number of Bobbies Falling
The press tends to get a bit excited about the number of front line police officers. Its really not complex. Above is a chart showing the number of police constables who were in work. It does not include the long term sick. For reps that is all we need as PCs arrest people. Remember DC is not a rank so they are included in these numbers. For our purposes Traffic Wardens, back office staff and senior ranks are irrelevant. Source: Home Office 2018 Workforce Figures March 2018

IMPORTANCE OF POLICE ATTENDANCE

20%

Steady as She Goes
Attending police stations has remained at a steady 20% of a firms income. That proportion remains largely unchanged year on year. The conclusion one can draw is that firms are not marketing themselves effectively. Police Station work is the bread and butter of any criminal firm. Howver firms generally do not have a budget for advertising and marketing. The Law Society will from time to time launch campaigns but they would appear to be largely ineffective. The pie chart shows Police Station Attendances as a proportion of total income from Legal Aid. This is the National Figure. Clearly there is variation between the firms. The police station matters are a part of the Lower Crime figure.

COMPARE FIRM PERFORMANCE

Total Legal Aid Income

Pick firms from the dropdown lists and press play...

Press the play button to compare the performance of any three firms. Watch them competing with each other over time. Tuckers have been consistenly top of the chart by claiming more criminal legal than any other firm. Its clearly been a difficult period but they have managed to increase revenues as other firms have been sliding. Although, overall revenues have not been adjusted for inflation, its clear that revenues are simply dropping for most. But some firms are fighting back.

FIRMS STILL CLOSING

YEAR	2011-12	2012-13	2013-14	2014-15	2015-16	2016-17	2017-18	2018-19	2019-20	2020-21	2021-22	2022-23	2023-24
VOLUME
% CHANGE		0.0%	0.0%	0.0%	0.0%	0.0%	0.0%	0.0%	0.0%	0.0%	0.0%	0.0%	0.0%

The only good news last year was a small increase in the number of firms. That was a glimmer of hope. Sadly the trend is still down. In 1999 there were 3500 firms practicing criminal law. In 2018-19 there are 1,232, which is a 35% decline. More of a concern is the sheer number of firms that have shut up shop. At 8% it is a steeper rate than in previous years.

POLICE CUTS & CRIME RATES

IS CRIME RISING? IS THERE A LINK TO POLICE CUTS?
This week's moral panic is knife crime. The Prime Minister is to host a Downing Street summit to tackle the issue. Theresa May said they would discuss what she described as a cycle of mindless violence. She has also said that there is 'no direct correlation' between rising knife crime and cuts to police budgets.

Number of Arrests

Number of Front Line Officers (Police Constables)

Police Budgets (Adjusted for Inflation)

A GOOD TIME TO DO SOME CRIME?

The real problem is that arrests are falling faster than the cuts to police. We are no longer prosecuting crime. We have stopped investigating crime and we are not arresting suspects. Even when we do arrest crooks we are not taking them to court unless its serious crime at the Crown Court.

The media and public are worried about knife crime. The Prime Minister is under pressure to do something but denies there is a link to austerity. Labour leader Jeremy Corbyn said there are too few police officers to tackle the problem and Metropolitan Police Chief Cressida Dick told the BBC there is 'some link' between falling police numbers and a rise in violent crime.

I am no Hans Rosling or Tim Harford but I can try to shed sonme light on this debate. The truth is not quite so clear cut of course. It never is. The police are clearly attacking the Prime Minister. They want more money after years of cuts. For her part the PM is defending her legacy as Home Secretary. The truth should be in the statistics but the numbers we have are simple not good enough. Police statistics are routinely rubbished by the Office for National Statistics (ONS). But the general trends are there and can be relied upon. When you factor it the National Crime Survey a picture does start to emerge. To be fair to the police the data on recorded crime can help identify short-term changes.Its fair to say that Teresa May has presided over a fall in crime. That could be due to her policies or it could be a co-incidence. The police are also correct to say that budgets have been cut. Both agree that knife crime is increasing and that it is concentrated in our cities. But no-one can show there is a link between rising knife crime and budget cuts. Indeed no-one can show that the overall decrease in crime is linked to policy, numbers of bobbies on the beat or any other factor. There is simply no evidence of any link.

The real story is that regardless of the rise and fall of crime in the UK the problem we actually face is being ignored and sadly is now overshadowed by a media story fueled by tensions between the police and Downing Street. The real problem is that arrests are falling faster than the cuts to police. We are no longer prosecuting crime.

There is a worrying conclusion. After many years of decline the last four year has seen a steady increase in knife crime, firearms, robbery, burglary, vehicle offences and murder. The overall numbers are still small for firearms and murder but it does mean austerity cuts to the criminal justice system could be having an effect.

Take a look at the charts below and judge for yourself...

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NUMBER OF ARRESTS IS DOWN

Number of Arrests Falling
Police Forces in the UK do not seem to like statistics. They are simply rubbish at providing them. But even if they massage, hide or simply obfuscate the figures the trends are more than clear. The number of arrests is falling. It would appear that the police are making fewer arrests. But more importantly the CPS are not charging people. The decline in court work far outstrips the decline in arrests. Source: Home Office 2018 Workforce Figures March 2018

FEWER FRONT LINE POLICE

The Thinning Blue Line
Lets Play Spot the Cop! The press and politicians tend to get a bit excited about the number of front line police officers. Its really not complex. Above is a chart showing the number of police constables in work. It does not include the long term sick. That is all we need as its PC and DCs who actually arrest people. The rank of PC includes Detective Constables too. Remember DC is not a rank so they are also included in these numbers. For our purposes Traffic Wardens, back office staff and senior ranks are irrelevant. Source: Home Office 2018 Workforce Figures March 2018

POLICE BUDGETS ARE DOWN

Police Budgets
Budget Dropping not Stopping: Central government funding to police forces in England and Wales fell by 25% between 2010 and 2015 (National Audit Office (NAO). In England & Wales most funding comes from the Home Office. But there are other sources such as devolved government in Wales, Crime Commissioners and elected mayors. On average 66% of the funding is from Central Government. It varies from Surrey which gets 44% and Northumbria which gets 83% of its funding from Central Government. Source: House of Commons Library: Social Indicator 2616 March 2018

OVERALL CRIME RATES DOWN

Overall Crime Rates in Decline
Crime is Going Down (Probably): The above chart shows both the crime recorded by police and the crime reported to the Crime Survey for England & Wales (CSEW). Neither is a reliable source. There are no accurate figures for anyone who wants to know how many crimes are commited in the UK. The police figures show a rise in crime over recent years but that is more likely due to the changes made in how the police record the numbers. The CSEW number is based on a survey of households and shows a steady decline. Realistically it is probably fair to say that there is a real, long term decline in crime. Source: Office for National Statistics (Crime in England and Wales: year ending September 2018)

KNIFE CRIME IS GOING UP

Knife Crime Up... but Firearms Down
Knife Crime is Going Up: There does appear to be an increasing level of knife crime, robbery and murder. Equally there have been dropping rates of shoplifting, firearms and computer related crime. The picture is mixed. It is worth remembering that the number of crimes involving sharp instruments is only 30,000. As a proportion of overall crime that is still very small indeed. Knife Crime is up 8% so there has been a recent spike knife crime. Robbery is up 17% and has been rising for some time. Murder is up by 14% Burlgary is down 1% following increases in recent years Shoplifting is down 1%, following a longer period of increases Firearm Crime is down by 4% Computer Crime is down by 33%. But the rise in knife crime needs to be viewed in context. It represents a very small proportion of overall crime. Source: Office for National Statistics (Crime in England and Wales: year ending September 2018)

OVERALL VIOLENT CRIME STEADY

Violent Crime has Bottomed Out
The rise in knife crime needs to be viewed in context. It represents a very small proportion of overall crime. Its clear from the above that violent crime has been gong down and appears to have plateaued. The police data in this area has been particularly poor over the years but academic studies of hospital admissions supports the conclusion that violent crime is dwindling. Source: Office for National Statistics (Crime in England and Wales: year ending September 2018)

WORRYING RISES...

VIOLENCE STILL RARE
There is a worrying conclusion. After many years of decline the last four year has seen a steady increase in knife crime, firearms, robbery, burglary, vehicle offences and murder. The overall numbers are still small for firearms and murder but it does mean austerity cuts to the criminal justice system could be having an effect. Source: Office for National Statistics (Crime in England and Wales: year ending September 2018) Murder rates exclude Hillsborough as well as the London and Manchester Terrorist attacks

NOTES & GUIDANCE...

METHODOLOGY & EXPLANATIONS
Why Publish:	We publish this information because we are all a bit nosy and lets face it who can resist looking at the firms to see how much they make! But there is a serious reason too. The data published by the government is difficult to trawl through. Our good friends at No Comment, the biggest police station agency in the country, provided us with the tools, graphs and coding skills to make the stats easier to understand. The stats contain a vast amount of information that gives you an insight into the Criminal Legal Aid system and the current state of the industry. It will help you plan for the future and understand just how we got to where we are today. There is a lot of info so it can take a while to load. Please be patient!
Sources:	All the data and information on this page come from the Governments Legal Aid statistics unless otherwise stated. You can view the whole datasets here at www.gov.uk.
Date Range	The data goes back to 2006/07 but prior to 2010/11 the data is not all that helpful as many details are simply missing.
Firm Numbers	Firm numbers are calculated by including any firm which undertook police station advice in a given year. This means we are looking at criminal firms and not the firms which did no work or merely do VHCC cases. The idea is to only include firms who are actually practicing at the coal face of criminal law. We have also excluded solicitor advocates as they are mainly inhouse and advocates.

DEFINITIONS
Lower:	Crime Lower. Police stations, prisons & magistrates courts
LGFS:	Litigators Graduated Fee Scheme. Soloicitors fees at the Crown Court.
AGFS:	Advocates Graduated Fee Scheme.Barrister & solicitor advocate fees at Crown Court
VHCC:	Very High Cost Cases. Complex Crown Court cases typically with trials exceeding 60 days


DATABASE LAYOUT
OVERALLSCHEME:	Crime
SCHEME:	LGFS AGFS High Cost Crime Crime Lower
TYPE:	Appeal Committal For Sentence Cracked Trial Guilty Plea Trial Other .. Telephone advice admin costs CDS direct telephone advice Police station: telephone advice only Police station: attendance Court duty solicitor session Carter Fee - Representation order- lower standard fee Carter Fee - Representation order - higher standard fee Advice & assistance (not at the police station) Carter Fee - Representation order - non-standard fee Pre-order cover Refused means test - form completion fee Representation order - non-standard fee Early cover Warrant of further detention (including Terrorism Act 2000, advice & assistance and other police sta Representation order- lower standard fee Representation order - higher standard fee Free standing advice and assistance Magistrates' court advocacy assistance Legal Help and Associated Civil Work - Public Law Advocacy assistance at parole board hearings Police Station: Post-charge attendance - Post-charge identification procedure/recharge/referral back Advocacy assistance at prison discipline hearings Immigration matter Advice and assistance in relation to an appeal (except CCRC) Second claim for deferred sentence Police Station: Post-charge attendance - breach of bail/arrest on warrant Mediation assessment alone Advice and assistance in relation to CCRC application High Court representation Police station: attendance (armed forces) Crown Court advocacy assistance File Review Warrant of further detention (armed forces) (including Terrorism Act 2000, advice & assistance and o Duty Solicitor standby Legal Help and Associated Civil Work - Miscellaneous Representation on an appeal by way of case stated Virtual Court Injunction ASBCP Act Legal Help and Associated Civil Work - ASBCP Act Varying pre-charge bail Extension pre-charge bail
REGION:	London Merseyside South East South South West West Midlands Wales East Midlands North West Eastern Yorkshire and Humberside North East
PROVIDERTYPE:	Solicitor Office Not for profit Advocate Solicitor Advocate
LOCALAUTHORITY:	Lewisham, Bromley, Hounslow, Southwark, Ealing, Wandsworth, Hackney, Newham, Tower Hamlets, Barnet, Islington, Croydon, Camden, City of London, Bexley, Waltham Forest, Merton, Hillingdon, Greenwich, Westminster, Redbridge, Hammersmith and Fulham, Lambeth, St. Helens, Medway, Maidstone, Kingston upon Thames, Brighton and Hove, Swale, Epsom and Ewell, Chichester, Reigate and Banstead, Dover, Gravesham, Sutton, Horsham, Dartford, Portsmouth, Crawley, Eastbourne, Guildford, Mid Sussex, Tunbridge Wells, Lewes, Bournemouth, Wycombe, Isle of Wight, Bracknell Forest, South Oxfordshire, Aylesbury Vale, West Berkshire, Southampton, Reading, Plymouth, Gosport, Test Valley, Cherwell, Vale of White Horse, Winchester, Chiltern, Gloucester, Wyre Forest, New Forest, Slough, Havant, Hart, Bristol, South Hams, Exeter, Torbay, Torfaen, Cornwall, North Somerset, Wiltshire, Sedgemoor, Caerphilly, Mid Devon, Stroud, Newport, North Devon, Bath and North East Somerset, West Somerset, Blaenau Gwent, Torridge, Rhondda Cynon Taf, South Somerset, Mendip, Swindon, Swansea, Bridgend, Neath Port Talbot, Carmarthenshire, Powys, Stoke-on-Trent, Pembrokeshire, Vale of Glamorgan, Cardiff, Ceredigion, Gwynedd, Monmouthshire, Merthyr Tydfil, Richmond upon Thames, Brent, Haringey, Birmingham, Coventry, Nuneaton and Bedworth, Warwick, Newcastle-under-Lyme, Tamworth, Walsall, Shropshire, Bromsgrove, Sandwell, Mansfield, Wolverhampton, Solihull, Stratford-on-Avon, Stafford, Dudley, Worcester, Herefordshire, County of, Liverpool, Carlisle, Telford and Wrekin, Tendring, Manchester, Bolton, Bury, Rochdale, Warrington, Wigan, Burnley, Salford, West Lancashire, Wirral, Halton, Barrow-in-Furness, Pendle, South Ribble, Stockport, Blackpool, Lancaster, Sefton, Cheshire West and Chester, Bradford, Oldham, Chorley, Preston, Tameside, Hyndburn, North Dorset, Poole, Milton Keynes, Rushmoor, Eastleigh, Basingstoke and Deane, Basildon, Suffolk Coastal, Breckland, Mid Suffolk, Cheshire East, Copeland, Wyre, Blackburn with Darwen, Fylde, Eden, Harrogate, South Lakeland, Gateshead, Rossendale, Ipswich, South Tyneside, Harlow, High Peak, Leicester, Spelthorne, Barking and Dagenham, Adur, Trafford, Hastings, Enfield, Woking, Peterborough, Newcastle upon Tyne, Dacorum, Taunton Deane, Worthing, Hartlepool, County Durham, North Tyneside, Darlington, Sunderland, Northumberland, Middlesbrough, Redcar and Cleveland, Allerdale, Barnsley, Wakefield, East Riding of Yorkshire, Stockton-on-Tees, Kirklees, Kingston upon Hull, Selby, Rotherham, Leeds, Doncaster, York, Richmondshire, Sheffield, Chesterfield, Scarborough, Craven, Calderdale, South Staffordshire, Bassetlaw, Tewkesbury, Kensington and Chelsea, North West Leicestershire, Melton, North East Lincolnshire, Nottingham, North Lincolnshire, South Kesteven, Boston, Derby, Hinckley and Bosworth, Erewash, Lincoln, Newark and Sherwood, East Staffordshire, Amber Valley, East Lindsey, Northampton, Charnwood, East Northamptonshire, Ashfield, Derbyshire Dales, North Kesteven, Corby, Fenland, Luton, Braintree, Kings Lynn and West Norfolk, Uttlesford, Southend-on-Sea, Stevenage, Waveney, Great Yarmouth, North Hertfordshire, South Holland, Wrexham, St Edmundsbury, East Cambridgeshire, Babergh, Central Bedfordshire, Colchester, St Albans, Norwich, Huntingdonshire, Hertsmere, Havering, Broadland, Cambridge, South Derbyshire, Malvern Hills, Wychavon, Redditch, Bedford, Denbighshire, Conwy, Isle of Anglesey, Flintshire, Thurrock, Canterbury, North East Derbyshire, Rugby, West Lindsey, Mole Valley, Harrow, Wellingborough, Knowsley, Tonbridge and Malling, Watford, Weymouth and Portland, Cannock Chase, East Hertfordshire, Sevenoaks, Chelmsford, Oxford, South Bucks, Castle Point, Shepway, Arun, Brentwood, Ashford, Broxtowe, West Dorset, Waverley, Fareham, West Oxfordshire, Daventry, West Devon, Lichfield, Cheltenham, Forest Heath, Thanet, Teignbridge, Welwyn Hatfield, Gedling, Tandridge, East Hampshire, Ribble Valley, Wealden, Harborough, Rother, Blaby, Broxbourne, Staffordshire Moorlands, East Dorset, South Gloucestershire, Windsor and Maidenhead, Kettering, South Norfolk, Christchurch, King's Lynn and West Norfolk, Newry, Mourne and Down, Epping Forest, North Norfolk, Oadby and Wigston, Wokingham, South Cambridgeshire, Dumfries and Galloway, Elmbridge, Bolsover, ..


LOWER CRIMINAL WORKTYPE CODES
APPA:	Advice and assistance in relation to an appeal (except CCRC)
APPB:	Advice and assistance in relation to CCRC application
APPC:	Appeal by way of case stated
ASAS:	Part 1 injunctions under Anti Social Behaviour Crime and Policing Act 2014
ASMS:	Legal Help and CLS associated work - Miscellaneous
ASPL:	Legal Help and CLS associated work - Public Law
ASSA:	Legal help
FRVA:	Firms claiming for file review payments
INVA:	Advice and assistance (not at the police station)
INVB:	Police station: telephone advice only
INVC:	Police station: attendance
INVD:	Police station: attendance (armed forces)
INVE:	Warrant of further detention (including Terrorism Act 2000
INVF:	Warrant of further detention (armed forces) (including Terrorism Act 2000
INVG:	Attendance
INVH:	Police Station: Post-charge attendance – breach of bail/arrest on warrant
INVI:	Police Station: Post-charge identification procedure/recharge/referral back for caution or warning
INVJ:	Immigration matter
INVK:	Extension to pre charge bail
INVL:	Varying Pre Charge Bail
PRIA:	Free standing advice and assistance
PRIB:	Advocacy assistance at prison discipline hearings
PRIC:	Advocacy assistance at parole board hearings
PROC:	Magistrates’ court advocacy assistance
PROD:	Court duty solicitor session
PROE:	Representation order- lower standard fee
PROF:	Representation order – higher standard fee
PROG:	Representation order – non-standard fee
PROH:	Crown Court advocacy assistance
PROI:	High Court representation
PROJ:	Second claim for deferred sentence
PROK:	Carter Fee - Representation order- lower standard fee ( No Travel + Waiting)
PROL:	Carter Fee - Representation order – higher standard fee ( No Travel + Waiting)
PROM:	Carter Fee - Representation order – non-standard fee ( No Travel + Waiting)
PROP:	Pre-order cover
PROT:	Early cover
PROU:	Refused means test – form completion fee
PROV:	Fee for breach of part 1 injunctions under Anti Social Behaviour Crime & Policing Act
TAAC:	Telephone advice admin costs
TCDA:	CDD Direct telephone advice
VCRT:	Virtual courts

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