Draft Sentencing Guideline: Overarching Principles - Sentencing Youths

HC 497, Tenth Report of Session 2008-09 - Report, Together with Formal Minutes, Oral and Written Evidence

Author:

House of Commons - Justice Committee

Publisher:

TSO (The Stationery Office)

The Committee considers that the 'Overarching principles - sentencing youths' is a crucial sentencing guideline. It fills a critical gap, setting out for youth courts the basis upon which they should sentence offenders under the age of 18 - guidance that the youth courts have not previously had.

The Committee's response highlights the key issues raised in evidence to it, for example, the apparent inconsistency in approaches to sentencing children and a varied understanding among sentencers of the concept that custody should only ever be a 'sentence of last resort' for young people.

The Committee also stresses that courts should have access to information about a young offender's mental health, learning difficulties and communication problems to enable the most appropriate sentence to be imposed.

The evidence the Committee took on this draft sentencing guideline highlighted key areas in relation to youth justice deserving of further scrutiny, such as the use of remand and provisions for offenders aged 18-24, and it will consider how to pursue these areas further in its work.

The draft guideline 'Overarching Principles - Sentencing Youths' was published by the Sentencing Guidelines Council on 30 June 2009. A PDF copy of the draft guideline is available to download at: www.sentencing-guidelines.gov.uk (opens new window)

Extent	84 pages	ISBN	9780215540850
Size	A4	Price	£14.50
Binding	Paperback	Published	13 Aug 2009
Availability	Colour copy: 3 - 5 days	Delivery	Delivery options and charges

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