Publications

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.

Independent analysis of the Scottish Sentencing Council's public consultation on the draft sentencing process guideline by Dr Rachel McPherson University of Glasgow.

The purpose of this report is to set out the Council’s views on some of the most common matters raised during the public consultation exercise on the draft sentencing process guideline and to give an indication of how the guideline submitted to the High Court will differ as a result.