Asked by: Philip Davies (Conservative - Shipley)
Question to the Ministry of Justice:
To ask the Secretary of State for Justice, what proportion of all determinate custodial sentences handed down to (a) men and (b) women were served in prison.
Answered by Chris Philp - Minister of State (Home Office)
Data on releases from prison is published regularly in the Offender Management Statistics:
Tables A3.2i and ii of Prison Releases 2018 show that the mean average proportion of the sentence served in prison by males released from determinate sentences in 2018 was 65%, the median proportion was 55%. For females the mean average was 50% and the median was 45%. This data includes both standard determinate sentences, for which the automatic release point is 50% of the sentence, and extended determinate sentences (EDS), for which the earliest point of release is two-thirds of the sentence.
There are two key factors which help to explain the difference in time served in custody. Men tend to be convicted of more serious offences attracting longer custodial sentences. This means that women are more likely to be eligible for early release under the home detention curfew (HDC) scheme, which allows release up to 135 days before the halfway point of the sentence and is limited to offenders sentenced to less than four years who pass a risk assessment. The data in these tables also includes time served following recall to prison from licenced supervision. Recalled men tend to be serving longer sentences (12 months or more) and will generally serve longer after recall than recalled women, who tend to be serving less than 12 months.
Asked by: Richard Burgon (Labour - Leeds East)
Question to the Ministry of Justice:
To ask the Secretary of State for Justice, how many women were sentenced to imprisonment for (a) 1 month or less, (b) 3 months or less and (c) 6 months or less for each of the offences listed in the Home Office Offence Code that his Department classifies as (i) non-violent and non-sexual offences and (ii) violent and sexual offences.
Answered by Edward Argar - Minister of State (Ministry of Justice)
The Ministry of Justice has published information on the number of women sentenced to immediate custody for theft from shops offences, and the length of these sentences in the Outcomes by Offence data tool available here: https://assets.publishing.service.gov.uk/government/uploads/system/uploads/attachment_data/file/802314/outcomes-by-offence-tool-2018.xlsx
Select ’46 Theft from Shops’ in the Offence filter
Select ’02: Female’ in the Sex filter
The total women sentenced to immediate custody can be found in row 36 and custodial sentence lengths can be found in row 56 onwards.
The Ministry of Justice does not have a specific classification for (i) non-violent and non-sexual offences and (ii) violent and sexual offences, as offences are classified by indictable or summary offence groupings and prosecutions are counted for principal offences. Broad indictable groups for ’01: Violence against the person’ and ’02: Sexual offences’ can be displayed using the Offence group filter in the above data tool for violent and sexual offences; all other offence groups would broadly cover non-violent and non-sexual offences. However, note that some offences that would be classified as violence (such as common assault and battery) are counted in the summary offences category.
Please note that the figures given in the pivot table relate to defendants for whom these offences were the principal offences for which they were dealt with.
Asked by: Kate Green (Labour - Stretford and Urmston)
Question to the Ministry of Justice:
To ask the Secretary of State for Justice, what steps his Department is taking to ensure that women in prison on imprisonment for public protection sentences have sentencing plans with release dates.
Answered by Edward Argar - Minister of State (Ministry of Justice)
It is for the independent Parole Board to review the detention of those prisoners serving an IPP sentence who have completed their tariff period. The Board will direct the release of these prisoners only if it is satisfied that the levels of risk posed to the general public are reduced enough that the National Probation Service and its partner agencies can safely manage them in the community under supervision. Therefore, whilst every female prisoner serving the IPP sentence should have a sentence plan, it is not possible for an offender manager to include a release date in the sentence plan.
A range of initiatives are in place, as part of the joint action plan, co-owned by HM Prison and Probation Service and the Parole Board, which are having a positive impact on the progression of women serving an IPP sentence. The initiatives include ensuring that there is a sufficient supply of places on offending behaviour programmes, to meet the demand in prisoners’ sentence plans.
On 27 June 2018 we published our strategy for female offenders. This sets out our vision to see fewer women coming into the criminal justice system, a greater proportion managed successfully in the community, and better conditions for those in custody.
Whilst HM Prison and Probation Service is focused on giving all prisoners serving IPP sentences opportunities to progress towards release, public protection must remain our priority.
Asked by: Andrew Rosindell (Conservative - Romford)
Question to the Ministry of Justice:
To ask the Secretary of State for Justice, how many women the Metropolitan police force area received an immediate custodial sentence of (a) less than and (b) more than six months for each category of offence from the (i) crown courts and (ii) magistrates courts in 2018-19.
Answered by Edward Argar - Minister of State (Ministry of Justice)
The number of female offenders sentenced to custody by court level and police force area, including the metropolitan police force area, in 2017, can be found in the Court outcomes by Police Force Area data tool, which can be found at the below link:
https://www.gov.uk/government/statistics/criminal-justice-system-statistics-quarterly-december-2017
Select the drop down boxes referring to custodial sentence length in order to establish sentence lengths. Select female from the sex drop box and, once having done this, young adults and adults to establish women. Offence classification can be found in both the Offence Type and Offence group boxes, depending on which categorisation is required here.
Court proceedings data for 2018 are planned for publication on 16 May 2019, with data for 2019 planned for publication in May 2020.
Our vision, as set out in our Female Offender Strategy, is to see fewer women coming into the criminal justice system and a greater proportion managed successfully in the community. To achieve this, we have invested £5m to support community provision for female offenders and women at risk of offending.
There is persuasive evidence showing community sentences, in certain circumstances, are more effective than short custodial sentences in reducing reoffending. The MoJ study ‘The impact of short custodial sentences, community orders and suspended sentence orders on re-offending’ published in 2015 found that over a 1-year follow up period, a higher proportion of people re-offended having been sentenced to custody of under 12 months without supervision on release than other similar people given community orders.
Unless we tackle the underlying causes of offending, we cannot protect the public from being victims of crime. Effective community orders can address offenders’ behaviour, answer their mental health and alcohol or drug misuse needs, and provide reparation for the benefit of the wider community.
Asked by: Philip Davies (Conservative - Shipley)
Question to the Ministry of Justice:
To ask the Secretary of State for Justice, pursuant to the Answer of 19 March 2019 to Question 230697 on prison sentences, how many community orders each of those offenders had previously been given before being sent to prison.
Answered by Lucy Frazer - Secretary of State for Culture, Media and Sport
The Answer of 19 March 2019 to Question 230697 provided data, broken down by males and females, on the highest number of previous offences committed by an offender who received their first immediate custodial sentences between year ending September 2014 and year ending September 2018. Pursuant to this answer data on how many community orders each of those offenders had previously been given before being sent to prison can be viewed in the table.
This analysis relates to a small number of offenders and so the information provided can be volatile and change significantly depending on the offender selected for each year. It should be noted that figures looking at the highest number of previous offences or disposal types are not representative of the majority of the offending population.
Sentencing is a matter for our independent courts, who take into account all the circumstances of the case, including any aggravating and mitigating factors. We are clear that sentencing must match the severity of a crime.
However, sentences should also rehabilitate. There is persuasive evidence showing community sentences, in certain circumstances, are more effective than short custodial sentences in reducing reoffending. The MoJ study ‘The impact of short custodial sentences, community orders and suspended sentence orders on re-offending’ published in 2015 involved around 350,000 sentencing occasions over 4 years and used 130 different variables to construct matched groups of offenders and examine the effect of short sentences relative to community sentences. This study found a reduction of around 3 percentage points in proven reoffences if offenders receiving sentences of less than 12 months were to get a community order instead. This is statistically significant and equates to around 30,000 proven reoffences in total over a one-year period. This means fewer victims of crime.
Unless we tackle the underlying causes of offending, we cannot protect the public from being victims of crime. Effective community orders can address offenders’ behaviour, answer their mental health and alcohol or drug misuse needs, and provide reparation for the benefit of the wider community.
Asked by: David Hanson (Labour - Delyn)
Question to the Ministry of Justice:
To ask the Secretary of State for Justice, how many women were sent to immediate custody from the (a) Crown Court and (b) Magistrates' Courts for sentences of (i) less than and (ii) more than six months for each offence classification in each police force area in England and Wales in 2018-19.
Answered by Edward Argar - Minister of State (Ministry of Justice)
The number of female offenders sentenced to custody by court level and police force area, including North Wales, in 2017, can be found in the Court outcomes by Police Force Area data tool, which can be found at the below link:-
https://www.gov.uk/government/statistics/criminal-justice-system-statistics-quarterly-december-2017
Select the drop down boxes referring to custodial sentence length in order to establish sentence lengths. Select female from the sex drop box and, once having done this, young adults and adults to establish women. Offence classification can be found in both the Offence Type and Offence group boxes, depending on which specific definition applies here.
The number of female offenders with no previous convictions sentenced to immediate custody by court type, sentence length, and offence type in England and Wales in 2017 can be found in the attached table.
Court proceedings data for 2018 are planned for publication on 16 May 2019, with data for 2019 planned for publication in May 2020.
Our vision, as set out in our Female Offender Strategy, is to see fewer women coming into the criminal justice system and a greater proportion managed successfully in the community.
There is persuasive evidence showing community sentences, in certain circumstances, are more effective than short custodial sentences in reducing reoffending. The MoJ study ‘The impact of short custodial sentences, community orders and suspended sentence orders on re-offending’ published in 2015 involved around 350,000 sentencing occasions over 4 years and used 130 different variables to construct matched groups of offenders and examine the effect of short sentences relative to community sentences. This study found a reduction of around 3 percentage points in proven reoffences if offenders receiving sentences of less than 12 months were to get a community order instead. This is statistically significant and equates to around 30,000 proven reoffences in total over a one-year period. This means fewer victims of crime.
Unless we tackle the underlying causes of offending, we cannot protect the public from being victims of crime. Effective community orders can address offenders’ behaviour, answer their mental health and alcohol or drug misuse needs, and provide reparation for the benefit of the wider community.
Asked by: David Hanson (Labour - Delyn)
Question to the Ministry of Justice:
To ask the Secretary of State for Justice, how many women with no previous convictions were sent to immediate custody from the (a) the Crown Court and (b) Magistrates' Courts for sentences of (i) below 6 months and (ii) 6 months and above in each police force area in England and Wales in 2018-19; and what the offence classification was in each of those cases.
Answered by Edward Argar - Minister of State (Ministry of Justice)
The number of female offenders sentenced to custody by court level and police force area, including North Wales, in 2017, can be found in the Court outcomes by Police Force Area data tool, which can be found at the below link:-
https://www.gov.uk/government/statistics/criminal-justice-system-statistics-quarterly-december-2017
Select the drop down boxes referring to custodial sentence length in order to establish sentence lengths. Select female from the sex drop box and, once having done this, young adults and adults to establish women. Offence classification can be found in both the Offence Type and Offence group boxes, depending on which specific definition applies here.
The number of female offenders with no previous convictions sentenced to immediate custody by court type, sentence length, and offence type in England and Wales in 2017 can be found in the attached table.
Court proceedings data for 2018 are planned for publication on 16 May 2019, with data for 2019 planned for publication in May 2020.
Our vision, as set out in our Female Offender Strategy, is to see fewer women coming into the criminal justice system and a greater proportion managed successfully in the community.
There is persuasive evidence showing community sentences, in certain circumstances, are more effective than short custodial sentences in reducing reoffending. The MoJ study ‘The impact of short custodial sentences, community orders and suspended sentence orders on re-offending’ published in 2015 involved around 350,000 sentencing occasions over 4 years and used 130 different variables to construct matched groups of offenders and examine the effect of short sentences relative to community sentences. This study found a reduction of around 3 percentage points in proven reoffences if offenders receiving sentences of less than 12 months were to get a community order instead. This is statistically significant and equates to around 30,000 proven reoffences in total over a one-year period. This means fewer victims of crime.
Unless we tackle the underlying causes of offending, we cannot protect the public from being victims of crime. Effective community orders can address offenders’ behaviour, answer their mental health and alcohol or drug misuse needs, and provide reparation for the benefit of the wider community.
Asked by: David Hanson (Labour - Delyn)
Question to the Ministry of Justice:
To ask the Secretary of State for Justice, how many women in the North Wales police force area received an immediate custodial sentence of (a) less than and (b) more than six months for each category of offence from the (i) Crown Courts and (ii) Magistrates Courts in 2018-19.
Answered by Edward Argar - Minister of State (Ministry of Justice)
The number of female offenders sentenced to custody by court level and police force area, including North Wales, in 2017, can be found in the Court outcomes by Police Force Area data tool, which can be found at the below link:-
https://www.gov.uk/government/statistics/criminal-justice-system-statistics-quarterly-december-2017
Select the drop down boxes referring to custodial sentence length in order to establish sentence lengths. Select female from the sex drop box and, once having done this, young adults and adults to establish women. Offence classification can be found in both the Offence Type and Offence group boxes, depending on which specific definition applies here.
The number of female offenders with no previous convictions sentenced to immediate custody by court type, sentence length, and offence type in England and Wales in 2017 can be found in the attached table.
Court proceedings data for 2018 are planned for publication on 16 May 2019, with data for 2019 planned for publication in May 2020.
Our vision, as set out in our Female Offender Strategy, is to see fewer women coming into the criminal justice system and a greater proportion managed successfully in the community.
There is persuasive evidence showing community sentences, in certain circumstances, are more effective than short custodial sentences in reducing reoffending. The MoJ study ‘The impact of short custodial sentences, community orders and suspended sentence orders on re-offending’ published in 2015 involved around 350,000 sentencing occasions over 4 years and used 130 different variables to construct matched groups of offenders and examine the effect of short sentences relative to community sentences. This study found a reduction of around 3 percentage points in proven reoffences if offenders receiving sentences of less than 12 months were to get a community order instead. This is statistically significant and equates to around 30,000 proven reoffences in total over a one-year period. This means fewer victims of crime.
Unless we tackle the underlying causes of offending, we cannot protect the public from being victims of crime. Effective community orders can address offenders’ behaviour, answer their mental health and alcohol or drug misuse needs, and provide reparation for the benefit of the wider community.
Asked by: Chris Elmore (Labour - Ogmore)
Question to the Ministry of Justice:
To ask the Secretary of State for Justice, how many women were given a custodial sentence of under six months in (a) England (b) Wales in each year between 2010 and 2018.
Answered by Rory Stewart
The number of women that have been sentenced to up to six months custody in England and Wales in each year since 2010 has been published up to December 2017 and can be found in the table below. Data for 2018 will be published in May 2019.
We want to see fewer women serving short custodial sentences as evidence clearly shows that putting them into prison can do more harm than good for society, failing to cut the cycle of reoffending and often exacerbating already difficult family circumstances.
That is why we are shifting the focus to managing women in the community where they can access a wider range of support, for example, helping them with substance misuse and mental health problems.
Last year the department published our dedicated female offender strategy setting out a commitment to divert the most vulnerable women in the criminal justice system away from custody. As part of that we are by investing £5million in community provision for women.
Number of women serving custodial sentences of under 6 months in England and Wales each year from 2010 – 2017
Year | 2010 | 2011 | 2012 | 2013 | 2014 | 2015 | 2016 | 2017 |
England | 4895 | 4842 | 4591 | 4328 | 4699 | 4535 | 4499 | 4467 |
Wales | 343 | 320 | 335 | 377 | 382 | 392 | 458 | 456 |
Asked by: Chris Ruane (Labour - Vale of Clwyd)
Question to the Ministry of Justice:
To ask the Secretary of State for Justice, how many female offenders have been given immediate custodial sentences at magistrates courts in Wales in each of the last seven years.
Answered by Edward Argar - Minister of State (Ministry of Justice)
Data for sentencing broken down by age, sex and location has been published up to December 2017 and can be found in the ‘Court outcomes by Police Force Area data tool’, available at the following link: https://assets.publishing.service.gov.uk/government/uploads/system/uploads/attachment_data/file/733996/court-outcomes-by-pfa-2017-update.xlsx.
For Wales, filter the Police Force Area to Dyfed-Powys, Gwent, North Wales, South Wales.
For England, remove the above locations and ‘special/miscellaneous and unknown police forces’ from the Police Force Area filter.
For the number of young adults sentenced to less than 12 months custody:
For the number of females given immediate custodial sentences at magistrates’ court: