PPS received 1,645 sexual-offence files in 2025/26

In brief: The Public Prosecution Service received 1,645 files involving sexual offences in 2025/26, including 562 rape files. The figures count files, suspects, decisions and court defendants separately; they are not a measure of how many offences occurred.

Northern Ireland’s Public Prosecution Service (PPS) received 1,645 sexual-offence files between 1 April 2025 and 31 March 2026. That was a 2% increase on the 1,613 files recorded in 2024/25, according to its latest annual bulletin.

What the PPS sexual-offence statistics show

The PPS recorded 562 files involving rape, down from 616 the previous year, a fall of 8.8%. The files received during 2025/26 included 1,702 suspects. These are different measures: one file can involve more than one suspect.

The PPS issued 1,714 prosecutorial decisions in cases involving sexual offences. The Test for Prosecution was met in 35% of those decisions, representing 600 decisions for prosecution or diversion from the courts. Of 1,114 decisions not to prosecute, 99.5% did not pass the evidential test.

The median time to issue a decision was 141 days for indictable cases dealt with in the Crown Court and 55 days for summary cases heard in the Magistrates’ or Youth Courts.

What the court outcome figures mean

The report says 207 defendants were dealt with in the Crown Court for sexual offences during 2025/26. The overall conviction rate was 75.4%. This is a court-outcome measure and should not be read as the proportion of reports or files that resulted in conviction.

Of 60 defendants dealt with in the Crown Court for rape, 43 were convicted of at least one offence, while 18 were convicted of rape. In the Magistrates’ and Youth Courts, 202 defendants were dealt with for sexual offences; the overall conviction rate was 68.3%.

How to read the statistics

Files, suspects, prosecutorial decisions and defendants are separate counting units. They describe different stages of the justice process and should not be added together or compared as if they measured the same thing.

The bulletin reports the PPS workload and outcomes during a financial year. It does not measure the total number of sexual offences in Northern Ireland or show the prevalence of abuse. A change in files received is not, by itself, evidence of a change in the number of offences committed.

How the PPS makes prosecution decisions

The PPS explains its approach in its guide to how prosecution decisions are reached. The Test for Prosecution considers whether the evidential test is met and, where it is, whether prosecution is required in the public interest.

Support and further information

Anyone affected by domestic or sexual abuse can contact the free Domestic and Sexual Abuse Helpline on 0808 802 1414. The service is available 24 hours a day, seven days a week, according to the Department of Justice.

Read the full PPS statistical publication for 2025/26 and the Department of Justice information on the Domestic and Sexual Abuse Helpline. For more Northern Ireland updates, visit Northern Ireland Online News.

Source: Public Prosecution Service for Northern Ireland statistical bulletin, published 12 November 2026. Support information is attributed to the Department of Justice.