Question to the Ministry of Justice:

To ask the Secretary of State for Justice, how many women aged 18 years and above from each ethnic group were sentenced to custody for a first offence, broken down by (a) offence type and (b) sentence length in the last two full years for which data is available.

Sentencing decisions are entirely a matter for the independent judiciary. When considering the appropriate sentence, the judge will take into consideration a number of factors, including the seriousness of the offence and the impact that the crime has had on the victim.

All courts must follow guidelines issued by the independent Sentencing Council. The judge will take into account any mitigation which might include personal circumstances, expressions of remorse and a guilty plea. While the sentencing framework and guidelines apply equally to everyone, any differences in sentencing outcomes may therefore occur for a number of reasons, including the types of crimes committed and the seriousness of the offence.

We are committed to making sure sentencers have robust community options at their disposal. We are working with partners in Greater Manchester on a pathfinder aimed at providing sentencers with robust and effective sentencing options in the community that may divert women from custody, where appropriate. Learning from the pathfinder will inform a new operating model for working differently with women in the criminal justice system. We have also legislated to make sure that the needs of female offenders are addressed under our Transforming Rehabilitation reforms. Companies bidding for contracts will be expected to demonstrate an effective approach to the identification and recognition of women’s needs, as well as protected characteristics, to make sure that individual needs are properly addressed. They will be held to account to deliver these services in their contracts. With the Advisory Board on Female Offenders, we have produced guidance for new providers on working with female offenders.

Table 1 shows the number of female offenders aged 18 and above sentenced to immediate custody for a first offence by ethnicity and offence class in England and Wales in 2012-2013.

Table 2 shows the number of female offenders aged 18 and above sentenced to immediate custody for a first offence by ethnicity and sentence length in England and Wales in 2012-2013.