Publications

This report sets out the Council’s views on some of the most common matters raised during the public consultation exercise on the draft sentencing young people guideline and gives an indication of how the guideline submitted to the High Court will differ as a result. 

Authors: Dr Johanne Miller and Dr Sarah AndersonUniversity of the West of Scotland As part of developing the draft guideline the Council wanted to explore the views and opinions of young people across Scotland. In May 2019, the University of the West of Scotland was commissioned by the Council to explore the opinions of young people, including young people with convictions, on sentencing and the draft guideline. This research was carried out during the period July 2019 to January 2020.

This document fulfils the Scottish Sentencing Council’s statutory duty to provide an assessment of the costs and benefits to which the implementation of a guideline is likely to give rise, and an assessment of the likely impact of the guideline on the criminal justice system in general.

The High Court of Justiciary has approved a new sentencing guideline developed by the Scottish Sentencing Council, aimed at increasing public knowledge and understanding of the sentencing process in Scotland. The sentencing process guideline sets out an 8 step guide which courts should follow in order to reach a sentencing decision, including some of the factors which may be taken into account. The guideline will come in to effect for all courts in Scotland from Wednesday 22nd September 2021.

Public perceptions of sentencing in Scotland - Qualitative research exploring sexual offencesAuthors: Hannah Biggs, Susan Reid, Kaushi Attygalle, Konstantina Vosnaki (ScotCen), Dr Rachel McPherson (University of Glasgow) and Professor Cyrus Tata (Strathclyde Centre for Law, Crime & Justice, Law, School, University of Strathclyde) Through a series of focus groups and interviews, the research examined awareness and understanding of sexual offences among the public, views on the factors which should be taken into account when sentencing, and perceptions of current practice, including a sentencing exercise using a real world case. The Council commissioned the research to help guide its work to promote understanding and awareness of sentencing and to inform its development of guidelines on sexual offences.