The United Kingdom Peace Index (UKPI), produced by the Institute for Economics and Peace (IEP), provides a comprehensive measure of the levels of peacefulness within the United Kingdom from 2012 to 2022. The UK Peace Index (UKPI) 2024 covers 66 Police Force Areas (PFAs) across England, Wales, Northern Ireland, and Scotland. The UKPI is unique in that it allows for safety and security analysis at both the national and subnational levels. This approach provides an in-depth analysis of the factors influencing peace and safety within the United Kingdom, highlighting trends and issues from 2012 to 2022. The UKPI is based on the Global Peace Index, the preeminent global measure of peacefulness which has been produced by IEP annually since 2007.

The UK Peace Index (UKPI) gauged peace according to the levels of violent crime, homicide, public disorder, weapons crime and the number of police.

• Homicide (rate per 100,000 population)
• Violent Crime (rate per 100,000 population)
• Weapons Crime (rate per 100,000 population)
• Police Officers (rate per 100,000 population)
• Public disorder offences per 100,000 population)

Each of these five indicators is given a weighting of between 1 and 5. The weights are decided by the IEP research team, based on advice given by IEP’s expert panel on the weighting used in the GPI. The UKPI uses police recorded data collected from March 2012 to March 2022 and aggregated by the Home Office, Office for National Statistics, Police Scotland and the Police Service of Northern Ireland.

• • Peacefulness in the UK has deteriorated by over 90 per cent since 2012. Sixty-six Police Force Areas (PFA) have been assessed in the index. Of those, 56 are less peaceful now than they were a decade ago.
• • In England and Wales, North Yorkshire is the most peaceful PFA. The least peaceful is West Midlands.
• • In Scotland, Highlands and Islands is the most peaceful PFA. The least peaceful is Greater Glasgow.
• • In Northern Ireland, Fermanagh and Omagh is the most peaceful PFA. The least peaceful is Belfast City.
• • The pandemic and the subsequent cost of living crisis may have contributed to rising crime rates. Over the past decade, there have been six periods of decline in GDP per capita. During the same period, the UK experienced significant increases in reported violent crime, weapons offences, and public disorder incidents, as well as a notable reduction in police officer numbers.
• • Knife crime rates in England and Wales are now more than one fifth higher than they were a decade ago. Youths aged 10 to 17 represent the highest proportion of offenders detained for weapons offences, with a rate of 59.6 detentions per 100,000 youths compared to the adult rate of 32.4 detentions per 100,000 adults. Identified possible causes of this include reduced funding to youth services and increased antisocial activity such as drug use.