Ministry of Justice

The Department carries out media training in-house and so did not spend any money on media or voice training for Ministers in this period.

As outlined in PQ 9269, the Ministry of Justice’s total cost spent on refurbishments to Ministerial Private Offices, including new furniture and fittings, was £13,314.73, during the period requested.

The following table provides details of furniture purchased as part of the refurbishment of Ministerial offices:

The following table provides a breakdown of refurbishment and redecoration works to Ministerial offices and surrounding areas. “Miscellaneous renovation works” refers to multiple works that cannot be disclosed individually, due to commercial sensitivity around pricing, but includes works such as hanging pictures on walls, and affixing blanking plates to where wires were removed from the wall.

1,889 prisoners were released on day one of tranche 1 and 1,223 were released on day one of tranche 2 of SDS40 releases. All visits for the installation of tags for these offenders were completed by 4 November.

To provide the number of people who did not have a tag fitted following release under the early release measure (SDS40) may give an indication of the number of people released under SDS40 to date, which forms a subset of prison releases data which is scheduled for future publication.

In accordance with the requirements of the Code of Practice for Official Statistics, we may not give any early indication of the contents of this statistical report.

1,889 prisoners were released on day one of tranche 1 and 1,223 were released on day one of tranche 2 of SDS40 releases. All visits for the installation of tags for these offenders were completed by 4 November.

To provide the number of people who did not have a tag fitted following release under the early release measure (SDS40) may give an indication of the number of people released under SDS40 to date, which forms a subset of prison releases data which is scheduled for future publication.

In accordance with the requirements of the Code of Practice for Official Statistics, we may not give any early indication of the contents of this statistical report.

The Ministry of Justice publishes data on the sentencing outcomes of criminal offences in England and Wales between the year ending June 2010 and year ending June 2024, in the Outcomes by Offence data tool, that can be downloaded from the Criminal Justice Statistics page here: Criminal Justice Statistics.

Although child sex offences are not a defined category within the tool, you can filter offences using the HO Offence codes listed in the attachment linked above.

The proportion of convictions for child sexual offences resulted in custodial sentences is listed below. A list of specific offences that comprise the data below can be found in the accompanying attachment. We advise caution when comparing the 1994 data with more recent data included in the time series. This is due to differences in the way child sexual offences were defined.

Year Proportion

1994 48%

2004 65%

2014 72%

2024 (January-June) 59%

The average length of sentences for child sexual offences is as follows:

Year Average Custodial Sentence Length (Months)

1994 23.6

2004 40.2

2014 66.1

2024 (January-June) 75.3

The Ministry of Justice publishes data on the sentencing outcomes of criminal offences in England and Wales between the year ending June 2010 and year ending June 2024, in the Outcomes by Offence data tool, that can be downloaded from the Criminal Justice Statistics page here: Criminal Justice Statistics.

Although child sex offences are not a defined category within the tool, you can filter offences using the HO Offence codes listed in the attachment linked above.

The proportion of convictions for child sexual offences resulted in custodial sentences is listed below. A list of specific offences that comprise the data below can be found in the accompanying attachment. We advise caution when comparing the 1994 data with more recent data included in the time series. This is due to differences in the way child sexual offences were defined.

Year Proportion

1994 48%

2004 65%

2014 72%

2024 (January-June) 59%

The average length of sentences for child sexual offences is as follows:

Year Average Custodial Sentence Length (Months)

1994 23.6

2004 40.2

2014 66.1

2024 (January-June) 75.3

Reoffending rates for offenders released from an IPP sentence are measured from the point of prison release in line with the published methodology, not from the point of licence termination. The latest proven reoffending rate for offenders released from an IPP sentence was 8.4% in 2021/22.

The proven reoffending rate for the adult cohort who were released from custody was 37.0% in 2021/22.

The number of people who have reoffended following release under the early release scheme (SDS40) forms a subset of prison releases data which is scheduled for future publication. In accordance with the requirements of the Code of Practice for Official Statistics, we are not permitted to give any early indication of the contents of this statistical report.

This Government inherited a criminal justice system on the brink of collapse, and as a result was forced to introduce the emergency SDS40 scheme which allows some individuals to be released 40% of the way through their custodial sentence rather than at 50%. Anyone released under SDS40 is subject to strict licence conditions, which can include electronic monitoring or curfews, and face being recalled to prison should they breach these conditions.

Serco had a backlog of visits to install tags and we were clear that their performance is currently below acceptable levels. We are having regular meetings to hold them to account and already imposing financial penalties given their performance to date and won’t hesitate to trigger relevant contractual penalties if they do not improve. Serco has prioritised the SDS40 releases requiring electronic monitoring and performance on the tranche 2 caseload was much improved. As of Monday 4 November, all visits to install tags for SDS40 cases had been completed. Where a tag was not fitted, a non-compliance notification was set to Probation to consider enforcement action.

The number of people who have reoffended following release under the early release measure (SDS40) forms a subset of prison releases data which is scheduled for future publication. In accordance with the requirements of the Code of Practice for Official Statistics, we may not give any early indication of the contents of this statistical report.

General reoffending rates are published regularly on an annual and quarterly basis. The most recent rates are available at the following link: https://www.gov.uk/government/collections/proven-reoffending-statistics.

Our initial operational insights suggested there was not a significant change to the use and application of recall since the implementation of the SDS change, however we will continue to monitor this. Serco prioritised the SDS40 releases requiring electronic monitoring and performance on the tranche 2 caseload was much improved.

As of 4 November, all visits to install tags for SDS40 Tranche 2 cases had been completed.

Work on the introduction of the helpline at HMP Birmingham was interrupted owing to the circumstances of the COVID-19 pandemic and an interim measure was put in place. This enables prisoners to make calls to the general helpline provided by CALM, using the prison PIN service. Possible extension of the service to other prisons remains under consideration.

Within the prison expansion programmes, the Rapid Deployment Cells Programme has been affected by nutrient neutrality rules at four sites. Developments in these catchment areas need to either secure nutrient credits or other nutrient mitigation for planning permission to be granted. To date, mitigation has been secured at three of the four sites.

The Ministry of Housing, Communities and Local Government’s Planning and Infrastructure Bill proposes a more strategic approach to nature recovery, which we expect would streamline the process for nutrient neutrality mitigation.

Of the 245 transgender prisoners who reported their legal gender as male (i.e. those who now identify as women, non-binary or gender-fluid) on 31 March 2024, 151 were convicted of a sexual offence. This includes both contact and non-contact sexual offences. Offence data was not available for 1 individual.

Of the 50 transgender prisoners who reported their legal gender as female on 31 March 2024, the number convicted of a sexual offence is five or fewer. We do not provide exact data for such small sample sizes as it risks identification of individuals. This approach is in line with our standards on data disclosure.

Of the 245 transgender prisoners who reported their legal gender as male (i.e. those who now identify as women, non-binary or gender-fluid) on 31 March 2024, 151 were convicted of a sexual offence. This includes both contact and non-contact sexual offences. Offence data was not available for 1 individual.

Of the 50 transgender prisoners who reported their legal gender as female on 31 March 2024, the number convicted of a sexual offence is five or fewer. We do not provide exact data for such small sample sizes as it risks identification of individuals. This approach is in line with our standards on data disclosure.

This Government inherited a criminal justice system on the brink of collapse and was therefore forced on 10 September 2024, to take the unavoidable step to move certain release points from 50% to 40%, with an initial tranche of eligible offenders released on this date, and a second tranche released on 22 October 2024.

There was an issue with a repealed Breach of Restraining Order offence which meant that some offenders were released in error in the first tranche because they were incorrectly sentenced. This affected 37 offenders and this specific cohort were all returned to custody. All prisoners in custody with this offence recorded against them were reviewed to ensure there were no further releases in error.

The number of people who have been recalled following release under the emergency measure (SDS40) forms a subset of prison releases data which is scheduled for future publication. In accordance with the requirements of the Code of Practice for Official Statistics, we may not give any early indication of the contents of these statistical reports.

The Ministry of Justice publishes data on the number convicted for drink driving offences at criminal courts in England and Wales in the Outcomes by Offences data tool, that can be downloaded from the Criminal Justice Statistics landing page here: Criminal Justice Statistics.

This can be accessed by navigating to the ‘Prosecutions and convictions’ tab, using the HO Offence Code filter to select the following offences:

80301 - Driving or attempting to drive a motor vehicle whilst unfit through drink or drugs (impairment) (MOT).

80302 - Driving or attempting to drive a motor vehicle while having a breath, urine or blood alcohol concentration in excess of the prescribed limit (MOT).

80303 - Failing without reasonable excuse to provide a specimen for a laboratory test or two specimens for analysis of breath if at the relevant time driving or attempting to drive a motor vehicle (MOT).

80306 - Being in charge of a motor vehicle and failing to provide a specimen for a laboratory test or two specimens for analysis of breath if at the relevant time driving or attempting to drive a motor vehicle (MOT).

80309 - Driving or attempting to drive a motor vehicle whilst unfit through drink or drugs (impairment) - drink (MOT).

The table below shows the number of foreign national offenders removed under prisoner transfer agreements in each year since 2020, including 2024 to date:

As the number of foreign national prisoners is constantly changing, it is not possible to represent the above figures as a proportion of the total.

Prisoners are not permitted to have mobile telephones, and stringent measures are in place to prevent the entry of mobile telephones into establishments.

The information requested could only be obtained at disproportionate cost.

Small travel kettles have been allowed in prisoners’ possession for many years. HM Prison & Probation Service is aware of the risk of assaults by throwing of boiling water and works constantly to mitigate and reduce these risks.

All prisons carry out regular risk assessments relating to safety and security and implement associated safe systems of work. If a specific risk is identified in relation to use of a kettle, or intelligence is received that one may be used in an assault, the kettle will be withdrawn until it is assessed that it is safe to return it.

Our 10-year Prison Capacity strategy published on 11 December sets out plans to deliver 14,000 prison places the previous Government promised but failed to deliver. It also sets out our plans to maintain the places in our estate to ensure we have sufficient accommodation and explore the acquisition of land should we need to build more prison places. This will include a new 1,700-place prison in Leicestershire (next to HMP Gartree), in addition to HMP Fosse Way in Leicester which opened in 2023.

We have also launched an Independent Sentencing Review, chaired by former Lord Chancellor, David Gauke. The Review’s aim is to ensure we are never again left in a position that this Government was, where we have more prisoners than places available.

Information that would enable us to answer these questions robustly is not collated centrally, and to obtain it would involve a manual interrogation of courts and prison records which would result in a disproportionate cost to the Department.

Information that would enable us to answer these questions robustly is not collated centrally, and to obtain it would involve a manual interrogation of courts and prison records which would result in a disproportionate cost to the Department.

Information that would enable us to answer these questions robustly is not collated centrally, and to obtain it would involve a manual interrogation of courts and prison records which would result in a disproportionate cost to the Department.

Sentencing guidelines are developed by the independent Sentencing Council for England and Wales, in fulfilment of its statutory duty to do so.

The Council is independent of Parliament and Government. As an independent body, the Council decides on its own priorities and work plan for producing and reviewing guidelines. The Lord Chancellor or the Court of Appeal can ask the Council to consider reviewing or producing guidelines in a particular area, but the Council is not required to agree to any such requests.

The Council monitors and evaluates all definitive guidelines, as per its statutory duty to do so. The assessment covers the operation and effect of the guideline. A report on the evaluation findings is published online. A variety of different methods of data collection and analysis may be used, as necessary: analysis of existing data on sentencing trends over time, collections of data from sentencers on factors that influence their sentencing of different offences, interviews and focus groups, analysis of Crown Court sentencing transcripts and media reports.

Sentencing guidelines for child sexual offences were first published in 2013. Following consultation, revised guidelines were published and came into force in May 2022.

Sentencing guidelines are developed by the independent Sentencing Council for England and Wales, in fulfilment of its statutory duty to do so.

The Council is independent of Parliament and Government. As an independent body, the Council decides on its own priorities and work plan for producing and reviewing guidelines. The Lord Chancellor or the Court of Appeal can ask the Council to consider reviewing or producing guidelines in a particular area, but the Council is not required to agree to any such requests.

The Council monitors and evaluates all definitive guidelines, as per its statutory duty to do so. The assessment covers the operation and effect of the guideline. A report on the evaluation findings is published online. A variety of different methods of data collection and analysis may be used, as necessary: analysis of existing data on sentencing trends over time, collections of data from sentencers on factors that influence their sentencing of different offences, interviews and focus groups, analysis of Crown Court sentencing transcripts and media reports.

Sentencing guidelines for child sexual offences were first published in 2013. Following consultation, revised guidelines were published and came into force in May 2022.

Sentencing guidelines are developed by the independent Sentencing Council for England and Wales, in fulfilment of its statutory duty to do so.

The Council is independent of Parliament and Government. As an independent body, the Council decides on its own priorities and work plan for producing and reviewing guidelines. The Lord Chancellor or the Court of Appeal can ask the Council to consider reviewing or producing guidelines in a particular area, but the Council is not required to agree to any such requests.

The Council monitors and evaluates all definitive guidelines, as per its statutory duty to do so. The assessment covers the operation and effect of the guideline. A report on the evaluation findings is published online. A variety of different methods of data collection and analysis may be used, as necessary: analysis of existing data on sentencing trends over time, collections of data from sentencers on factors that influence their sentencing of different offences, interviews and focus groups, analysis of Crown Court sentencing transcripts and media reports.

Sentencing guidelines for child sexual offences were first published in 2013. Following consultation, revised guidelines were published and came into force in May 2022.

Sentencing guidelines are developed by the independent Sentencing Council for England and Wales, in fulfilment of its statutory duty to do so.

The Council is independent of Parliament and Government. As an independent body, the Council decides on its own priorities and work plan for producing and reviewing guidelines. The Lord Chancellor or the Court of Appeal can ask the Council to consider reviewing or producing guidelines in a particular area, but the Council is not required to agree to any such requests.

The Council monitors and evaluates all definitive guidelines, as per its statutory duty to do so. The assessment covers the operation and effect of the guideline. A report on the evaluation findings is published online. A variety of different methods of data collection and analysis may be used, as necessary: analysis of existing data on sentencing trends over time, collections of data from sentencers on factors that influence their sentencing of different offences, interviews and focus groups, analysis of Crown Court sentencing transcripts and media reports.

Sentencing guidelines for child sexual offences were first published in 2013. Following consultation, revised guidelines were published and came into force in May 2022.

In 2018/19 there were 1,317 review oral hearings for IPP prisoners and in 2022/23 there were 792, a reduction of 40%. During a similar period, the unreleased IPP prisoner population reduced from 2,491 on 31 December 2018 to 1,227 on 31 December 2023, a reduction of 51%. As such, the number of IPP oral hearings has reduced by a smaller proportion than the reduction in the IPP prisoner population.

The Parole Board has taken a number of steps to continue to progress those IPPs referred for a parole review, where it is safe to do so, including:

• prioritising indeterminate prisoners, over determinate sentenced prisoners, when listing their oral hearings; and
• giving a future oral hearing date to over two thirds of the IPP prisoners who require an oral hearing, to allow professionals additional notice to prepare for the parole review and give the prisoner a date to work towards.

Officials in the Ministry of Justice, HMPPS and the Parole Board are working closely together to ensure the parole system is working as efficiently and effectively as possible.

The Ministry of Justice routinely publishes data on the average length of time Imprisonment for Public Protection (IPP) prisoners spent in custody following recall. The most recent data can be found in Table 5.Q.11: licence-recalls-Apr-to-June-2024.ods.

The figures from the latest publication on the last five quarters of available data have been provided below:

Where an offender on an IPP licence is recalled to custody, the Secretary of State must refer the offender to the Parole Board, and the Board will conduct a review in order to determine whether the offender may be safely re-released. The Ministry of Justice, HMPPS and the Parole Board are working together to improve the efficiency of the parole system, including with a view to ensuring that the Board completes post-recall reviews as quickly as possible.

Following commencement of the majority of IPP provisions in the Victims and Prisoners Act 2024 on 1 November 2024, and as an alternative to review by the Parole Board, the Secretary of State now has a power to release recalled IPP prisoners – without the need for a release decision by the Parole Board – following a process known as Risk Assessed Recall Review (RARR). The Secretary of State must apply the same test as the Parole Board and therefore, must be satisfied that it is no longer necessary for the protection of the public that they should stay in prison.

The Ministry of Justice routinely publishes data on the number of IPP prisoners and IPP offenders under probation supervision as part of its quarterly Offender Management Statistics publication. Prison figures can be found under ‘Prison Population’ in Table 1.Q.14 and community figures can be found under ‘Probation’ in Table 6.13: Offender management statistics quarterly - GOV.UK. The figures from the last five years of available data have been provided below.

Table 1. Shows the number of IPP prisoners, at end of period, September 2020 to September 2024, England and Wales.

Table 2. Shows the number of offenders serving IPP sentences in the community on licence, at end of period, June 2020 to June 2024, England and Wales.

Please note:

(1) Includes offenders serving a Detention for Public Protection (DPP) sentence who are defined in the data as offenders serving an IPP sentence, but were aged under 18 at the time of sentencing.

(2) The data pipeline used to compile the figures in this table has been updated. This change was introduced from June 2024. More details can be found in the 'Probation data process transition' section of Chapter 6 of the Offender Management Statistics quarterly publication, available at: https://www.gov.uk/government/statistics/offender-management-statistics-quarterly-april-to-june-2024.

The Government is committed to ensuring that implementation of the IPP Action Plan and its initiatives safely reduce the IPP population both in custody and the community, whilst still prioritising public protection.

On 1 November 2024, the Government implemented the first phase of IPP provisions in the Victims and Prisoners Act 2024, which saw licences terminated for 1,742 IPP offenders in the community. In addition to this, around 600 people will be referred to the Parole Board for consideration of licence termination on the commencement of phase two on 1 February 2025. We anticipate that these changes, once fully implemented, will reduce the number of people serving IPP sentences in the community by around two-thirds.

The Government recognises the specific challenges faced by those serving IPP sentences. We are committed to improving outcomes for individuals with mental health needs, including IPP prisoners, and recognise the importance of providing the right interventions at the right time. This is reflected in the National Partnership Agreement on Health and Social Care in England which was published in 2023, which sets out a shared priority workplan to deliver safe, decent and effective care for offenders in prison and the community. The Chief Medical Officer has agreed to the Lord Chancellor’s request to consider the IPP sentence as part of his independent review of offender health.

Health and justice partners provide an equivalent standard, range and quality of healthcare in prisons to that available in the community. If a prisoner has a severe mental health need to an extent that detention under the Mental Health Act 1983 may be appropriate, they will be referred and assessed by qualified clinicians to determine whether to transfer to a mental health hospital is warranted.

HMPPS operates a traffic light system for all never-released IPP offenders to identify those who are struggling to progress through their sentence plan, so that resources can be directed to offenders who need it most. HMPPS is rolling this system out to all IPP offenders, including those recalled to custody and those on licence in the community, in the first quarter of 2025.

The Ministry of Justice routinely publishes data on the average length of time Imprisonment for Public Protection (IPP) prisoners spent in custody following recall. The most recent data can be found in Table 5.Q.11: licence-recalls-Apr-to-June-2024.ods.

The figures from the latest publication on the last five quarters of available data have been provided below:

Where an offender on an IPP licence is recalled to custody, the Secretary of State must refer the offender to the Parole Board, and the Board will conduct a review in order to determine whether the offender may be safely re-released. The Ministry of Justice, HMPPS and the Parole Board are working together to improve the efficiency of the parole system, including with a view to ensuring that the Board completes post-recall reviews as quickly as possible.

Following commencement of the majority of IPP provisions in the Victims and Prisoners Act 2024 on 1 November 2024, and as an alternative to review by the Parole Board, the Secretary of State now has a power to release recalled IPP prisoners – without the need for a release decision by the Parole Board – following a process known as Risk Assessed Recall Review (RARR). The Secretary of State must apply the same test as the Parole Board and therefore, must be satisfied that it is no longer necessary for the protection of the public that they should stay in prison.

The Ministry of Justice routinely publishes data on the number of IPP prisoners and IPP offenders under probation supervision as part of its quarterly Offender Management Statistics publication. Prison figures can be found under ‘Prison Population’ in Table 1.Q.14 and community figures can be found under ‘Probation’ in Table 6.13: Offender management statistics quarterly - GOV.UK. The figures from the last five years of available data have been provided below.

Table 1. Shows the number of IPP prisoners, at end of period, September 2020 to September 2024, England and Wales.

Table 2. Shows the number of offenders serving IPP sentences in the community on licence, at end of period, June 2020 to June 2024, England and Wales.

Please note:

(1) Includes offenders serving a Detention for Public Protection (DPP) sentence who are defined in the data as offenders serving an IPP sentence, but were aged under 18 at the time of sentencing.

(2) The data pipeline used to compile the figures in this table has been updated. This change was introduced from June 2024. More details can be found in the 'Probation data process transition' section of Chapter 6 of the Offender Management Statistics quarterly publication, available at: https://www.gov.uk/government/statistics/offender-management-statistics-quarterly-april-to-june-2024.

The Government is committed to ensuring that implementation of the IPP Action Plan and its initiatives safely reduce the IPP population both in custody and the community, whilst still prioritising public protection.

On 1 November 2024, the Government implemented the first phase of IPP provisions in the Victims and Prisoners Act 2024, which saw licences terminated for 1,742 IPP offenders in the community. In addition to this, around 600 people will be referred to the Parole Board for consideration of licence termination on the commencement of phase two on 1 February 2025. We anticipate that these changes, once fully implemented, will reduce the number of people serving IPP sentences in the community by around two-thirds.

The Government recognises the specific challenges faced by those serving IPP sentences. We are committed to improving outcomes for individuals with mental health needs, including IPP prisoners, and recognise the importance of providing the right interventions at the right time. This is reflected in the National Partnership Agreement on Health and Social Care in England which was published in 2023, which sets out a shared priority workplan to deliver safe, decent and effective care for offenders in prison and the community. The Chief Medical Officer has agreed to the Lord Chancellor’s request to consider the IPP sentence as part of his independent review of offender health.

Health and justice partners provide an equivalent standard, range and quality of healthcare in prisons to that available in the community. If a prisoner has a severe mental health need to an extent that detention under the Mental Health Act 1983 may be appropriate, they will be referred and assessed by qualified clinicians to determine whether to transfer to a mental health hospital is warranted.

HMPPS operates a traffic light system for all never-released IPP offenders to identify those who are struggling to progress through their sentence plan, so that resources can be directed to offenders who need it most. HMPPS is rolling this system out to all IPP offenders, including those recalled to custody and those on licence in the community, in the first quarter of 2025.

The Ministry of Justice routinely publishes data on the average length of time Imprisonment for Public Protection (IPP) prisoners spent in custody following recall. The most recent data can be found in Table 5.Q.11: licence-recalls-Apr-to-June-2024.ods.

The figures from the latest publication on the last five quarters of available data have been provided below:

Where an offender on an IPP licence is recalled to custody, the Secretary of State must refer the offender to the Parole Board, and the Board will conduct a review in order to determine whether the offender may be safely re-released. The Ministry of Justice, HMPPS and the Parole Board are working together to improve the efficiency of the parole system, including with a view to ensuring that the Board completes post-recall reviews as quickly as possible.

Following commencement of the majority of IPP provisions in the Victims and Prisoners Act 2024 on 1 November 2024, and as an alternative to review by the Parole Board, the Secretary of State now has a power to release recalled IPP prisoners – without the need for a release decision by the Parole Board – following a process known as Risk Assessed Recall Review (RARR). The Secretary of State must apply the same test as the Parole Board and therefore, must be satisfied that it is no longer necessary for the protection of the public that they should stay in prison.

The Ministry of Justice routinely publishes data on the number of IPP prisoners and IPP offenders under probation supervision as part of its quarterly Offender Management Statistics publication. Prison figures can be found under ‘Prison Population’ in Table 1.Q.14 and community figures can be found under ‘Probation’ in Table 6.13: Offender management statistics quarterly - GOV.UK. The figures from the last five years of available data have been provided below.

Table 1. Shows the number of IPP prisoners, at end of period, September 2020 to September 2024, England and Wales.

Table 2. Shows the number of offenders serving IPP sentences in the community on licence, at end of period, June 2020 to June 2024, England and Wales.

Please note:

(1) Includes offenders serving a Detention for Public Protection (DPP) sentence who are defined in the data as offenders serving an IPP sentence, but were aged under 18 at the time of sentencing.

(2) The data pipeline used to compile the figures in this table has been updated. This change was introduced from June 2024. More details can be found in the 'Probation data process transition' section of Chapter 6 of the Offender Management Statistics quarterly publication, available at: https://www.gov.uk/government/statistics/offender-management-statistics-quarterly-april-to-june-2024.

The Government is committed to ensuring that implementation of the IPP Action Plan and its initiatives safely reduce the IPP population both in custody and the community, whilst still prioritising public protection.

On 1 November 2024, the Government implemented the first phase of IPP provisions in the Victims and Prisoners Act 2024, which saw licences terminated for 1,742 IPP offenders in the community. In addition to this, around 600 people will be referred to the Parole Board for consideration of licence termination on the commencement of phase two on 1 February 2025. We anticipate that these changes, once fully implemented, will reduce the number of people serving IPP sentences in the community by around two-thirds.

The Government recognises the specific challenges faced by those serving IPP sentences. We are committed to improving outcomes for individuals with mental health needs, including IPP prisoners, and recognise the importance of providing the right interventions at the right time. This is reflected in the National Partnership Agreement on Health and Social Care in England which was published in 2023, which sets out a shared priority workplan to deliver safe, decent and effective care for offenders in prison and the community. The Chief Medical Officer has agreed to the Lord Chancellor’s request to consider the IPP sentence as part of his independent review of offender health.

Health and justice partners provide an equivalent standard, range and quality of healthcare in prisons to that available in the community. If a prisoner has a severe mental health need to an extent that detention under the Mental Health Act 1983 may be appropriate, they will be referred and assessed by qualified clinicians to determine whether to transfer to a mental health hospital is warranted.

HMPPS operates a traffic light system for all never-released IPP offenders to identify those who are struggling to progress through their sentence plan, so that resources can be directed to offenders who need it most. HMPPS is rolling this system out to all IPP offenders, including those recalled to custody and those on licence in the community, in the first quarter of 2025.

The Government recognises the importance of supporting separating families, and where appropriate, helping them resolve their issues quickly and without the need to come to court.

We know that early access to information for separating families is essential and we are working to improve the information, both online through GOV.UK, and offline via sources such as family hubs, to help inform separating families of their options before applying to court.

We also continue to work with the Department for Education to ensure that Family Hubs connect families going through parental separation to services and support locally, to ensure outcomes for their children are front and centre when agreeing child arrangements.

The Ministry of Justice is not responsible for judicial training. This is the responsibility of the Judicial College.

The Ministry of Justice is not responsible for judicial training. This is the responsibility of the Judicial College.

His Majesty’s Courts and Tribunals Service does not currently hold data on how many FM5 forms are filed before the first hearing.

The Government recognises the importance of supporting separating families, and where appropriate, helping them resolve their issues quickly and without the need to come to court.

The Family Mediation Voucher Scheme continues to provide £500 towards the cost of mediation. To date, over £16 million of vouchers have helped 33,000 separating parents to access mediation. Analysis of the first 7,200 completed under the scheme suggests that 69% of participants reached whole or partial agreement and did not need to go on to court.

The Department for Work and Pensions runs the Reducing Parental Conflict (RPC) programme which aims to address frequent, intense and poorly resolved conflict between parents and improve outcomes for children.

The programme, funds grants to Local Authorities in England who work in partnership with multi-agency stakeholders, commissioning relationship support for parents in conflict. Evidence of the impact of these innovative services to increase access for diverse families can be found at https://www.gov.uk/guidance/reducing-parental-conflict-programme-evaluation.

The Ministry of Justice publishes data on the number of prosecutions at criminal courts in England and Wales between 2010 and June 2024 in the Outcomes by Offences data tool, that can be downloaded from the Criminal Justice Statistics landing page here: Criminal Justice Statistics Quarterly: June 2024.

For prosecutions from the Magistrates’ courts in England & Wales between 2010 and 2023, the Magistrates court tool can be downloaded from the Criminal Justice Statistics landing page here: Criminal Justice System statistics quarterly: December 2023 - GOV.UK.

The data requested can be accessed by navigating to the ‘Sentence Outcomes’ tab and using the ‘Sentence outcome’ filter to select ‘Fine’ in both the Magistrates’ court tool and the Outcome by Offence tool.

Currently, in centrally collated sentencing data, it is only possible to identify cases recorded and processed on the Automated Track Case Management System as Single Justice Procedure (SJP) cases – this only reflects a portion of all SJP cases. There is work ongoing to improve this. Select the filter ‘SJP Flag’ to see number of these cases.

The Ministry of Justice publishes data on the number of prosecutions at criminal courts in England and Wales between 2010 and June 2024 in the Outcomes by Offences data tool, that can be downloaded from the Criminal Justice Statistics landing page here: Criminal Justice Statistics Quarterly: June 2024.

For prosecutions from the Magistrates’ courts in England & Wales between 2010 and 2023, the Magistrates court tool can be downloaded from the Criminal Justice Statistics landing page here: Criminal Justice System statistics quarterly: December 2023 - GOV.UK.

The data requested can be accessed by navigating to the ‘Sentence Outcomes’ tab and using the ‘Sentence outcome’ filter to select ‘Fine’ in both the Magistrates’ court tool and the Outcome by Offence tool.

Currently, in centrally collated sentencing data, it is only possible to identify cases recorded and processed on the Automated Track Case Management System as Single Justice Procedure (SJP) cases – this only reflects a portion of all SJP cases. There is work ongoing to improve this. Select the filter ‘SJP Flag’ to see number of these cases.

The Ministry of Justice publishes data on the number of prosecutions at criminal courts in England and Wales between 2010 and June 2024 in the Outcomes by Offences data tool, that can be downloaded from the Criminal Justice Statistics landing page here: Criminal Justice Statistics Quarterly: June 2024.

For prosecutions from the Magistrates’ courts in England & Wales between 2010 and 2023, the Magistrates court tool can be downloaded from the Criminal Justice Statistics landing page here: Criminal Justice System statistics quarterly: December 2023 - GOV.UK.

The data requested can be accessed by navigating to the ‘Sentence Outcomes’ tab and using the ‘Sentence outcome’ filter to select ‘Fine’ in both the Magistrates’ court tool and the Outcome by Offence tool.

Currently, in centrally collated sentencing data, it is only possible to identify cases recorded and processed on the Automated Track Case Management System as Single Justice Procedure (SJP) cases – this only reflects a portion of all SJP cases. There is work ongoing to improve this. Select the filter ‘SJP Flag’ to see number of these cases.

The Ministry of Justice publishes data on the number of prosecutions at criminal courts in England and Wales between 2010 and June 2024 in the Outcomes by Offences data tool, that can be downloaded from the Criminal Justice Statistics landing page here: Criminal Justice Statistics Quarterly: June 2024.

However, prosecutions for vehicles illegally in cycle boxes (advanced stop lines) cannot be separately identified from the broader offence of ‘failing to comply with traffic lights, signals or signs’ in the Court Proceedings database.

The criminal law in England and Wales provides a range of offences to deal with the scourge of child sexual abuse and provides robust penalties that reflect the seriousness of this offending. Child sexual offences generally carry high maximum penalties; for example, the offences of rape of a child under 13 and assault of a child under 13 by penetration both carry a maximum penalty of life imprisonment.

Scotland and Northern Ireland have their own sexual offences. The sentencing framework across international jurisdictions varies widely.

The Government has delivered on a manifesto commitment to bring sentencing up to date by launching an Independent Review of Sentencing chaired by former Lord Chancellor, David Gauke. The Sentencing Review will be guided by the evidence on what works to keep the public safe from harm and rehabilitate offenders. This includes looking at evidence from the criminal justice system in England and Wales as well as other jurisdictions in the UK, and internationally.

The overall proven reoffending rate for England has decreased from 29.1% in 2017/18 to 25.0% in 2021/22 (the latest year for which reoffending data is available – see Table 1).

The overall proven reoffending rate for Cheshire has decreased from 29.6% in 2017/18 to 27.5% in 2021/22 (the latest year for which reoffending data is available – see Table 1).

We do not currently hold reoffending data broken down by parliamentary constituency.

This Government is committed to reducing reoffending by giving people the tools they need to turn their backs on crime. To do that, we will increase prisoners’ access to purposeful activity, including education and employment, which we know can reduce reoffending by up to 9 percentage points.

For example, we have recruited specialist education and employment roles in prisons to support and prepare prisoners for work on release, including Prison Employment Leads who match prisoners to jobs. Prison Employment Leads are currently in place at HMP Risley, HMP Styal and HMP Thorn Cross, three prisons located in Cheshire.

Charging decisions, and guidance are made by the Crown Prosecution Service, and sentencing is determined by independent courts. The Sentencing Council for England and Wales issues guidelines for sentencing that apply to all offenders and operates independently from Government.

It is right that we have a gender-neutral sentencing framework that recognises the specific circumstances of individual offenders.

Whilst there will always be women who do need to be in custody, we must ensure they are given the best chance possible to tackle the drivers of their offending and to contribute meaningfully to society.

This Government has delivered on a manifesto commitment by launching an Independent Review of Sentencing, chaired by former Lord Chancellor, David Gauke. The Review will assess whether the sentencing framework appropriately considers the specific needs or vulnerabilities of women. Additionally, we will establish a Women’s Justice Board with a clear ambition to reduce the number of women in prison and address their distinct needs within the Criminal Justice System.

The requested information has been provided in the attached data table. To note that the ‘date of custody’ represented in this data is ‘30 September 2024’ (i.e. the individuals were in the remand prison population on this date) - this is in line with the most recent published prison population data available in the department’s offender management statistics.