Hospital admissions due to assault in England were nearly three per cent lower in the period April 2010 to March 2011 compared to the previous 12 month period, provisional figures from The NHS Information Centre show today.

Figures also show that in general the proportion of admissions due to assault was higher in the north of the country than in the south, although London had the highest proportion of admissions due to assaults by sharp object.

Provisionally, between April 2010 and March 2011:

• In England there were 41,262 admissions for assault overall, a 2.6 per cent (1,116) decrease on the previous 12 month period.
• North West Strategic Health Authority (SHA) had the highest number of assault admissions (8,341) and also the highest rate of assault admissions per 100,000 of all admissions (388) of any of the 10 SHAs in England.
• South Central SHA had the lowest number of assault admissions (1,812).
• East of England SHA had the lowest rate of assault admissions per 100,000 of all admissions (177) of any of the 10 SHAs.
• Assault by bodily force was the most common form of assault admission in all SHAs.
• The highest number of admissions for assault by sharp object (including knives) was in London SHA, at 1,262 in total and 63 per 100,000 of all admissions.

NHS Information Centre chief executive Tim Straughan said: “Although these figures are provisional, they point towards a fall in admissions for assault if you compare the most recent two 12 month periods. Our data also shows that while the admission rate for assault by bodily force was highest in the north; London had the highest rate for assault by sharp object.

“It must also be taken into account however that these figures are likely to represent the more serious of assaults - as they required an admission to hospital. Patients that are solely dealt with in accident and emergency departments are not included in these figures.”

Headline tables for today's publication are available at www.ic.nhs.uk/pubs/provisionalmonthlyhes

ENDS

Notes to editors

1. The NHS Information Centre is England's authoritative, independent source of health and social care information. It works with a wide range of health and social care providers nationwide to provide the facts and figures that help the NHS and social services run effectively. Its role is to collect data, analyse it and convert it into useful information which helps providers improve their services and supports academics, researchers, regulators and policymakers in their work. The NHS Information Centre also produces a wide range of statistical publications each year across a number of areas including: primary care, health and lifestyles, screening, hospital care, population and geography, social care and workforce and pay statistics.
2. HES provisional monthly data can be used for high level, aggregate analysis demonstrating approximate trends in activity. Lower level analysis should be approached with caution as not all activity will be correctly processed until the final annual data is produced. HES figures are available from 1989-90 onwards. Changes to the figures over time need to be interpreted in the context of improvements in data quality and coverage of data recorded (particularly in earlier years), improvements in coverage of independent sector activity (particularly from 2006-07) and changes in NHS practice. For example, apparent reductions in activity may be due to a number of procedures which may now be undertaken in outpatient settings and so no longer include in admitted patient HES data.
3. Hospital Episode Statistics (HES) are compiled from data sent by more than 300 NHS trusts and primary care trusts (PCTs) in England and from some independent sector organisations for activity commissioned by the English NHS. The NHS Information Centre for health and social care liaises closely with these organisations to encourage submission of complete and valid data and seeks to minimise inaccuracies. While this brings about improvement over time, some shortcomings remain. Figures refer to recorded assaults, and are reliant upon the accurate and complete recording of cause of hospital admission.
4. The publication includes provisional monthly data from April 2010 to March 2011 and final data for April 2009 to March 2010
5. External cause codes for assaults can be accessed at www.hesonline.nhs.uk and are: X85 Assault by drugs medicaments and biological substances X86 Assault by corrosive substance X87 Assault by pesticides X88 Assault by gases and vapours X89 Assault by other specified chemicals and noxious substances X90 Assault by unspecified chemical or noxious substance X91 Assault by hanging strangulation and suffocation X92 Assault by drowning and submersion X93 Assault by handgun discharge X94 Assault by rifle shotgun and larger firearm discharge X95 Assault by other and unspecified firearm discharge X96 Assault by explosive material X97 Assault by smoke fire and flames X98 Assault by steam hot vapours and hot objects X99 Assault by sharp object Y00 Assault by blunt object Y01 Assault by pushing from high place Y02 Assault by pushing or placing victim before moving object Y03 Assault by crashing of motor vehicle Y04 Assault by bodily force Y05 Sexual assault by bodily force Y06 Neglect and abandonment Y07 Other maltreatment syndromes Y08 Assault by other specified means Y09 Assault by unspecified means
6. Please note that these data should not be described as a count of people as the same person may have been admitted on more than one occasion.
7. For media enquires please call 0845 257 6990 or email mediaenquiries@ic.nhs.uk