Following several years of steady decline, the average daily population in Scotland’s prisons rose from 7,464 in 2017-18 to 8,195 in 2019-20.

A total of 17,294 individuals experienced imprisonment for all or part of 2019-20 – a fall of around 15 per cent since 2010-11 when the figure was 20,407.

While the number of people imprisoned has fallen, individuals are spending longer periods in custody – the latter determined by decisions made by the court as to the use and length of custodial sentences and decisions made by the Parole Board when an individual is considered for parole or release on life licence in the case of those serving indeterminate sentences.

The average length of time spent in custody has increased since 2010-11, with the proportion of individuals leaving prison having spent a year or more in custody rising from 7 per cent to 10 per cent, and the proportion leaving after spending up to three months in custody falling from 70 per cent to 58 per cent.

The rise in the prison population is due to growth in the population of adult men only. The average number of women in prison has remained broadly stable since 2013-14 (around 400) and the average number of young offenders (those under 21 years) continues a downward trend, falling from 865 in 2010-11 to 326 in 2019-20.