Scotland's sex crime rate has surged to its highest level in more than 50 years, with 16,430 offences recorded in 2025–26 – a 10 per cent rise on the previous year and the worst tally since records began in 1971. Behind that stark number are thousands of cases of rape, sexual assault and indecent communications, and advocates warn it almost certainly captures only a fraction of the real scale of abuse.
Rape Crisis Scotland, which runs national support services for survivors, has been consistent on this point for years: not everyone reports. Chief executive Alev Taylor said as much in response to the latest release, noting that 'many survivors choose not to report what has happened to them, so the true number of survivors remains even higher.' That caveat matters because it means 16,430 is a floor, not a ceiling.
