Violence in England and Wales in 2017: An Accident and Emergency perspective

Executive Summary • Serious violence levels and trends in England and Wales were studied based on data from a structured sample of 94 Emergency Departments (EDs), Minor Injury Units (MIUs) and Walk-in Centres. All are certified members of the National Violence Surveillance Network (NVSN). • Overall, an estimated 190,747 people attended EDs in England and Wales for treatment following violence in 2017, 1942 more than in 2016; a 1% increase. Falls or no change in overall violence levels in England and Wales according to this public health measure over the past decade were maintained in 2017. • In 2017, males (4.6 per 1,000 residents) were more than twice as likely as females (1.9 per 1,000 residents) to be treated in EDs following injury in violence. • Increases in violent injury among those aged 0-10 years (11%), 31-50 years (4.6%) and those aged 51 years and over (2.1%) were offset by the 1.8% decrease in violence among those aged 18-30 years. Due to small numbers, NVSN is unable to provide reliable violence trends for those aged 0-10 years. • Implementation of the new Emergency Care Data Set (ECDS) in Type 1 EDs in England led to increases in violence recording in the three months, October to December 2017. • Those most at risk of violence-related injury were males and those aged 18 to 30. Violence-related ED attendance was most frequent on Saturdays and Sundays