The number of 16 and 17 year-old first time offenders has fallen in west London to levels not seen since 2000.
There were just 360 16 and 17-year-olds receiving their first caution or conviction in 2013, down from 717 in 2002, according to figures released by the Ministry of Justice. The number has dropped 25.6%, from 484 in the last year alone.
Parts of west London are bucking a trend that is seeing the number of adults entering the justice system for the first time at their lowest levels since 2000 in England and Wales. While the number of first time offenders is falling, in places like Hounslow , Brent and Ealing , numbers only peaked in 2009 or 2010 so the drop is smaller than in other parts of the country.
The number of adults entering the justice system for the first time in London did not stop increasing until 2009, two years later than most other regions, and while numbers have dropped by a quarter from peak, from 35,450 to 26,756, the area is the only region where numbers are not at their lowest levels since 2000.
Across England and Wales, the number of 16 and 17-year-olds given their first caution or conviction in 2013, was at its lowest level since 2000, with 11,189 across England and Wales. This is down from a peak of 36,741 in 2006.
In 2013, 143,428 adults in England and Wales were given their first caution or conviction, down 6.7% from 153,701 in 2012. The total has dipped by more than a third, 35.3%, since a peak of 221,683 in 2007.
