Published stop and search

Stop and Search Statistics

Published stop and search records from data.police.uk, summarised for the selected period and police force. This is a count of published records, not a judgement of whether searches were justified.

June 2015 to June 2026

What this page shows

This page summarises the stop and search records currently loaded into CrimeMapsUK for the selected time period and police-force filter.

Coverage period
June 2015 to June 2026
Months included
118
Police force filter
Merseyside
Latest loaded month
June 2026

A recorded find is derived from the published stop and search outcome labels held in this dataset. It does not show whether a search was justified, proportionate, or effective. Unless you change the filters, the default view is the latest loaded month.

Read the methodology. Related: How to use the dashboards, FAQ, What is a stop and search record?.

Filters

Choose a month range and optional police force. The page defaults to the latest loaded month.

378525
Stop and Search Records
51854
Searches with a Recorded Find
13.7%
Recorded Find Rate
1
Police Forces in View
How these figures are calculated
Stop and search records
All loaded stop and search records in the selected time period and police-force filter.
Searches with a recorded find
Records marked by this dataset as having a find based on the published stop and search outcome.
Recorded find rate
The share of loaded stop and search records treated as a recorded find in this dataset. It does not show whether a search was justified.
Police forces in view
The number of police forces represented after the current filters are applied.
Demographic Breakdown

Age Group Distribution

View data table
Age group Records Searches with a recorded find Recorded find rate
10-17 57220 5105 8.9%
18-24 100878 15728 15.6%
25-34 86825 13749 15.8%
over 34 113968 14658 12.9%
Unknown 19570 2611 13.3%
under 10 64 3 4.7%

Gender Split

View data table
Gender Records Searches with a recorded find Recorded find rate
Other 84 9 10.7%
Unknown 20166 2809 13.9%
Male 321609 44692 13.9%
Female 36666 4344 11.8%
By Police Force

Recorded Find Rate by Police Force

View data table
Police force Records Searches with a recorded find Recorded find rate
Merseyside 378525 51854 13.7%
Search Powers and Legislation

Recorded Find Rate by Search Type

View data table
Search type Records Searches with a recorded find Recorded find rate
Vehicle search 7162 1842 25.7%
Person and Vehicle search 59285 11915 20.1%
Person search 312078 38097 12.2%

Top Legislation Used

Chart labels use short legislation names; hover or open the table for the full wording.

View data table
Legislation Records Searches with a recorded find Recorded find rate
Misuse of Drugs Act 1971 (section 23) 268384 41916 15.6%
Police and Criminal Evidence Act 1984 (section 1) 69188 8814 12.7%
Unknown 35186 811 2.3%
Criminal Justice and Public Order Act 1994 (section 60) 4340 87 2.0%
Firearms Act 1968 (section 47) 733 123 16.8%
Psychoactive Substances Act 2016 (s36(2)) 457 71 15.5%
Poaching Prevention Act 1862 (section 2) 118 15 12.7%
Aviation Security Act 1982 (section 27(1)) 43 5 11.6%
Criminal Justice Act 1988 (section 139B) 36 4 11.1%
Deer Act 1991 (section 12) 27 8 29.6%
Conservation of Seals Act 1970 (section 4) 5 0 0.0%
Protection of Badgers Act 1992 (section 11) 4 0 0.0%
Wildlife and Countryside Act 1981 (section 19) 3 0 0.0%
Crossbows Act 1987 (section 4) 1 0 0.0%
Legislation outcome tables

Drugs Act 1971 s.23

Misuse of Drugs Act 1971 (section 23)

OutcomeCount
A no further action disposal 189941
Arrest 21301
Community resolution 21198
Summons / charged by post 10293
Nothing found - no further action 9802

PACE 1984 s.1

Police and Criminal Evidence Act 1984 (section 1)

OutcomeCount
A no further action disposal 51113
Arrest 7307
Nothing found - no further action 4776
Unknown 1549
Community resolution 1210

Unknown

OutcomeCount
Unknown 27393
A no further action disposal 6904
Arrest 515
Summons / charged by post 154
Community resolution 146

CJPOA 1994 s.60

Criminal Justice and Public Order Act 1994 (section 60)

OutcomeCount
A no further action disposal 3800
Nothing found - no further action 244
Community resolution 94
Arrest 79
Summons / charged by post 56

Firearms Act 1968 s.47

Firearms Act 1968 (section 47)

OutcomeCount
A no further action disposal 471
Arrest 110
Nothing found - no further action 76
Unknown 21
Article found - Detailed outcome u… 14
Published Outcomes

Outcome Distribution

View data table
Published outcome Records
A no further action disposal 252759
Unknown 32116
Arrest 29368
Community resolution 22706
Nothing found - no further action 14898
Summons / charged by post 11716
Suspect arrested 3514
Khat or Cannabis warning 3321
Article found - Detailed outcome unavailable 2442
Caution (simple or conditional) 1990
Offender given drugs possession warning 1482
Penalty Notice for Disorder 1070
Suspect summonsed to court 528
Offender given penalty notice 519
Offender cautioned 84
Local resolution 12

Search Objects (Top 10)

View data table
Search object Records Searches with a recorded find Recorded find rate
Controlled drugs 189623 23290 12.3%
Unknown 136417 22420 16.4%
Offensive weapons 16079 1821 11.3%
Article for use in theft 12300 1367 11.1%
Stolen goods 8816 1593 18.1%
Anything to threaten or harm anyone 4692 503 10.7%
Articles for use in criminal damage 4070 333 8.2%
Evidence of offences under the Act 3968 315 7.9%
Fireworks 1139 28 2.5%
Firearms 901 107 11.9%
Data Quality Statement: Data sourced from data.police.uk under the Open Government Licence v3.0. Outcome labels come from the published police data source and may change as records are updated. Find rates are descriptive summaries of the selected records and should not be treated as a direct measure of policing quality.