In the South East, there are over 45,860 employees in the justice sector.  The largest proportion of sector employees in the region is employed in police and law enforcement (64%), followed by custodial care (17.3%).

The recorded crime rate for the South East in 2003-2004 was 9,130 recorded crimes per 100,000 population, which is much less than the England and Wales crime rate (11,308.2 per 100,000).  Nearly 7,700 people were sentenced in the Crown Courts and 28,000 in Magistrates’ Court in 2003.  The prison population is 12,071 in the region, with a capacity of 12,290.

Workforce profile:

• males account for 60.8% of the sector workforce
• 2.7% of the workforce are from a minority ethnic background
• less than 10% of the workforce are under 25 years (which is mainly due to entry requirement)
• the majority of the workforce are aged 35-44 years

Community justice and the Crown Prosecution Service sub-sectors have the largest proportions of women in the workforce.  The Crown Prosecution Service also has the largest proportion of people from a minority ethnic background (8.2%).

Source: Skills Foresight Regional Factsheet – South East 2005

For more key facts on the justice sub-sector in the region see:

Sub-sector regional information