HC Deb 31 January 2001 vol 362 cc200-3W
Miss Widdecombe

To ask the Secretary of State for the Home Department what his target date is for achieving the Government's pledge of halving the national average time from arrest to sentence for persistent young offenders; what progress has been made; and when he expects the target to be achieved. [148064]

Mr. Charles Clarke

In 1996 the average time from arrest to sentence for persistent young offenders was 142 days. Working with the local youth justice services, the Government's target is to halve this by March 2002. Substantial progress has already been made—the national average fell to an estimated 94 days by October 2000.

Mr. Lidington

To ask the Secretary of State for the Home Department (1) how many offenders under the age of 18 years were sentenced in(a) the magistrates court, (b) the youth court and (c) the Crown court, broken down by type of sentence, indicating in particular how many were given a (i) absolute discharge, (ii) conditional discharge, (iii) fine, (iv) community sentence and (v) custodial sentence in each of the last five years for which figures are available; [147604]

(2) what (a) custodial and (b) non-custodial disposals are available to the youth court; and on how many occasions each type of disposal has been used by the youth court in respect of young offenders in each of the past five years. [147605]

Table A: Number of offenders aged 10–17 sentenced at the magistrates court, broken down by type of sentence, England and Wales, 1995–99
1995 1996 1997 19981 19991
Total Sentenced 5,365 5,348 5,301 5,613 5,516
Absolute Discharge 87 91 85 87 70
Conditional Discharge 1,799 1,834 1,805 1,938 1,967
Fine 2,101 2,234 2,056 2,137 2,062
Probation Order 141 100 129 140 122
Supervision Order 383 323 362 409 379
Community Service Order 182 151 195 177 176
Attendance Centre Order 214 191 214 267 269
Combination Order 68 49 68 59 69
Curfew Order 2— 2 1 5 11
Total Community Sentence3 988 816 969 1,057 1,026
Secure Training Order 2— 2— 2— 4 5
Young Offender Institution 202 202 209 219 191
Total Immediate Custody4 202 202 209 223 196
Otherwise Dealt With5 188 171 177 171 195

Table B: Number of offenders aged 10–17 sentenced at the youth court, broken down by type of sentence, England and Wales, 1995–99
1995 1996 1997 19981 19991
Total Sentenced 59,470 65,345 38,869 75,907 79,883
Absolute Discharge 558 716 772 716 662
Conditional Discharge 20,479 21,508 22,308 23,986 24,649
Fine 12,258 14,707 16,376 18,887 18,609
Probation Order 1,820 2,235 2,405 2,700 2,813
Supervision Order 9,300 10,013 10,068 11,158 11,442
Community Service Order 2,974 3,269 3,435 3,604 4,114
Attendance Centre Order 6,376 6,366 6,569 6,965 7,542
Combination Order 798 1,127 1,354 1,523 1,625
Curfew Order 2— 11 36 149 300
Total Community Sentence3 21,268 23,021 23,867 26,099 27,836
Secure Training Order 2— 2— 2— 94 173
Young Offender Institution 3,592 3,900 3,920 4,198 4,560
Total Immediate Custody4 3,592 3,900 3,920 4,292 4,733
Otherwise Dealt With5 1,315 1,493 1,626 1,927 3,394

Table C: Number of offenders aged 10–17 sentenced at the Crown court, broken down by type of sentence, England and Wales, 1995–99
1995 1996 1997 19981 19991
Total Sentenced 2,965 3,904 4,922 4,774 4,761
Absolute Discharge 4 7 4 6 6
Conditional Discharge 116 113 144 136 110
Hospital Order Mental Health Act 1983 S37(l) 2 4 7 12 11
Restriction Order Mental Health Act 1983 S41 1 — — 1 —

Mr. Charles Clarke

[holding answer 29 January 2001]: Available information, taken from the Home Office Court Proceedings Database, showing the number of offenders aged under 18 years sentenced and the sentences imposed in (i) the magistrates court, (ii) the youth court and (iii) the Crown court are given in the tables for the period 1995 to 1999 (the most recent year for which data are available).

The custodial and non-custodial disposals available to the youth court, and the number of occasions each type of disposal has been used over the past five years by the youth court are also listed in the tables. A number of new orders became available for juveniles in 2000. A new custodial order, the Detention and Training Order was introduced on 1 April 2000 and replaces the secure training order (for 12 to 14-year-olds) and detention in a Young Offender Institution (for 15 to 17-year-olds). New non-custodial disposals, the reparation order and the action plan order, were introduced in June 2000.

Table C: Number of offenders aged 10–17 sentenced at the Crown court, broken down by type of sentence, England and Wales, 1995–99
1995 1996 1997 19981 19991
Fine 21 21 28 26 24
Probation Order 194 197 192 244 245
Supervision Order 460 580 819 867 858
Community Service Order 272 299 389 368 380
Attendance Centre Order 69 74 79 72 62
Combination Order 87 136 215 233 207
Curfew Order 2— 2— 2— 1 9
Total Community Sentence3 1,082 1,286 1,694 1,785 1,761
Detained Under S.53 Children and Young Person Act 1933 401 635 748 603 631
Secure Training Order 2— 2— 2— 4 17
Young Offender Institution 1,269 1,760 2,206 2,095 2,076
Total Immediate Custody4 1,670 2,395 2,954 2,702 2,724
Otherwise Dealt With5 69 78 91 106 125
1 Orders under the Crime and Disorder Act 1998 (examples include Reparation Order, Action Plan Order, Parenting Order and Drug Treatment and Testing Order), were piloted in selected areas in late 1998 and 1999, and are recorded as 'otherwise dealt with'.
2 Not applicable.
3 Community Sentence comprises: Probation Order, Supervision Order, Community Service Order, Attendance Centre Order, Combination Order and Curfew Order.
4 Immediate Custody comprises: Secure Training Order and Young Offender Institution.
5 Otherwise Dealt With includes: Compensation, Hospital or Guardianship Order under the Mental Health Act 1983, Police Cells, Recognizance, Parents to pay fine or compensation or costs, Parents bound over etc.

Disposals available to the youth court for offenders aged 10–17, England and Wales, 1995–99

Non-custodial

  • Absolute Discharge
  • Conditional Discharge
  • Fine
  • Probation order
  • Supervision Order
  • Community Service Order
  • Attendance Centre Order
  • Combination Order
  • Curfew Order

Custodial

  • Secure Training Order
  • Young Offender Institution
  • Otherwise Dealt With1

1Includes Compensation, Hospital or Guardianship Order under the Mental Health Act 1983, Police Cells, Recognizance, Parents to pay fine or compensation or costs, Parents bound over etc.