You asked
Please provide crime data at Local Authority District (LAD) level. I checked previous FOI requests and found there are crime data available at the following link: https://www.ons.gov.uk/peoplepopulationandcommunity/crimeandjustice/datasets/recordedcrimedataatcommunitysafetypartnershiplocalauthoritylevel
However, these data are available from 2003 onward and I would need a longer time period, starting from 1997. Moreover, these data are based on CPS which do not correspond to LADs perfectly. I think a time series at LAD level starting from 1997 should be in principle available from the Crime Survey of England and Wales, which runs since 1982. Would it be possible to access this longer series?
We said
Thank you for your request relating to information on crimes by Local Authority.
We do not publish police recorded crime data prior to 2003 due to the introduction of the National Crime Recording Standard (NCRS) in April 2002. As such, figures before and after the year ending March 2003 are not directly comparable. Data prior to 2003 are published by the Home Office, however these data are only available at Police Force Area level (see the accompanying downloadable spreadsheet, named 'rec-crime-pfa-1990-2002'). Police recorded crime data are held and provided to us by the Home Office. If you have any further queries regarding these data, they can be contacted directly at CrimeandPoliceStats@homeoffice.gov.uk.
Unfortunately, we are unable to provide you with the data you require at a local authority level from the Crime Survey for England and Wales (CSEW). In order to answer your request, we would need to use statistical skill and judgement to create an ad hoc analysis. Under the Freedom of Information Act (FOIA) 2000, public authorities are not obligated to create information in response to requests. We therefore consider this to be information not held. It is also worth noting that sample sizes within the CSEW at a Local Authority level are not robust enough to provide reliable estimates.
If you have any crime-related queries in the future, you can email crimestatistics@ons.gov.uk.