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.
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!
This is a big dataset and 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.
PICK A FIRM
LOADING PLEASE WAIT...
MORE STATS...
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!
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...
2017-18
TOTAL CRIME INCOME
LONDON
RANK
FIRM
JOBS
INCOME
REGIONAL TOP FIRMS
Click on the white arrows to see which firm makes the most money in your area. You can also change the year...
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...
YEAR
NOMINAL TERMS
REAL TERMS
2002/03
£265.92
£411.26
2003/04
£269.98
£405.79
2004/05
£264.19
£385.60
2005/06
£268.57
£381.17
2006/07
£269.64
£370.91
2007/08
£272.23
£359.06
2008/09
£266.69
£338.33
2009/10
£258.12
£329.14
2010/11
£250.57
£305.37
2011/12
£251.22
£291.06
2012/13
£251.73
£282.63
2013/14
£251.49
£274.01
2014/15
£232.68
£247.68
2015/16
£217.95
£229.75
2016/17
£228.61
£236.78
The real terms figures are calculated using the Bank of England retail price index.
CRIMINAL CASE VOLUMES CONTINUE TO SLIDE
INDUSTRY IN DECLINE AS VOLUMES FALL
Criminal Legal Aid Volumes
No great surprises here. Overall the number of cases is down, police station attendances are down and so are AGFS, LGFS, Lower Crime and VHCC cases. Its all simply down, down and down. The police are arresting fewer people and have suffered severe cuts as well. Criminal Law is an industry in decline. It has been argued that the Western World is simply better behaved but its more likley that cuts to police have meant fewer arrests. We now have a criminal justice system that is not inclined to investigate, arrest and prosecute. Whilst that will be good for society in the long term it is not good for criminal lawyers.
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.
LA BUDGET SHOWS SIGNS OF RECOVERY
LEGAL AID EXPENDITURE
Criminal Legal Aid Volumes
No great surprises here. Overall the number of cases is down, police station attendances are down and so are AGFS, LGFS, Lower Crime and VHCC cases. Its all simply down, down and down. The police are arresting fewer people and have suffered severe cuts as well. Criminal Law is an industry in decline.
INTERESTING DATA...
Is it worse than you think? Click the arrow button to go to the next slide.
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 CLOSURES MAY HAVE STOPPED
YEAR
2011-12
2012-13
2013-14
2014-15
2015-16
2016-17
2017-18
VOLUME
0
0
0
0
0
0
0
Possibly the only good news to be found in the statistics is that the number of firms closing no longer exceeds the number opening. After many years of steady decline there has been a very small increase in the number of criminal firms. In 1999 there were 3500 firms practicing criminal law. In 2017-18 there were 1335, which is a 38% decline. We seemed to have passed rock bottom and may now be seeing a resurgence, a palteau or just an anomaly.
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.
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...
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
