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01609 643100

Monday to Friday, 9am to 5pm. Calls charged at standard rate for landlines and mobiles.

Need help outside of our office hours?

0808 168 9111

Call the national victim supportline, operating 24/7.

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Sentencing offenders

Magistrates (in a magistrates’ court) or a judge (in the Crown Court) decide on an offender’s sentence. The magistrate or judge must consider the need to:

  • Punish a criminal
  • Protect the public
  • Change the offender’s behaviour
  • Get them to make amends for their crime
  • Cut crime in the future

What are the different types of court sentence?

When a court finds someone guilty of a crime, the most common sentences are:

  • A court fine.
  • A community sentence – for example, a curfew, unpaid work or going on a drug treatment programme.
  • A prison sentence.
  • A suspended prison sentence. Where the offender serves their sentence in the community – though if they commit another crime, they will usually be sent to prison.