Sentencing female offenders
When considering a custodial or community sentence for a female offender, the court should normally ask the Probation Service for a pre-sentence report. It is important for the court to ensure that it has sufficient information about a female offender’s background.
Courts should be aware that female offenders commonly offend for different reasons than male offenders and the impact of custodial sentences on female offenders will often be different. When sentencing a female offender, courts should consider that the available evidence suggests:
- Female offending is commonly linked to mental ill health (including trauma), substance-misuse, being a victim of domestic abuse, or financial and homelessness issues. Female offenders are more likely than male offenders to have been in statutory care or to have experienced emotional, physical or sexual abuse. Female offenders sentenced to custody are more likely than male offenders to suffer from anxiety or depression, self-harm or attempt suicide. Some female offenders have multiple disadvantages or needs which can increase the complexity of their circumstances that will need to be taken into consideration during sentencing.
- There are only a small number of prisons for female offenders. Therefore, female offenders are more likely than male offenders to be imprisoned some distance from support networks of friends and family. This will impact on their resettlement when they leave custody.
- Female offenders are at greater risk than male offenders of leaving custody without accommodation and being unemployed after release, leaving them vulnerable to further abuse and exploitation. A greater proportion of female offenders are unemployed when released than male offenders.
- The disadvantages female offenders face in the criminal justice system may be compounded for female offenders from an ethnic minority background. Some female offenders from ethnic minority backgrounds have distinct needs and experiences from both men from an ethnic minority background and white women. The legal process can be particularly confusing especially if English is not a first language; differences in cultural or religious beliefs may result in additional stigma and strain on family relationships from offending and the impact of custodial sentences can be particularly acute, especially in relation to the care of children and elderly relatives. See chapter 8 of the Equal Treatment Bench Book, particularly paragraphs 156-157 (page 171) for further information. For some offences, there is some evidence of disparity in sentence outcomes for offenders from some ethnic minority backgrounds.