An unpaid work requirement requires offenders to undertake work projects in their local community. In some regions, a proportion of these hours can be spent on education, training or employment activities for eligible offenders. “Community Payback” is a term used to describe the delivery of an Unpaid Work requirement.
Volume/length range: Between 40 – 300 hours to be completed within 12 months.
Work as part of an unpaid work requirement must be suitable for an offender to perform; and if necessary, this suitability should be assessed by the Probation Service. Probation will also be able to advise what type of projects are available in the region. The court must consider whether the offender is in employment during hours that may make an unpaid work requirement unsuitable, or whether the offender has any disabilities or limitations, has any dependants, or whether there are any other circumstances that may make an unpaid work requirement unsuitable.
If unpaid work hours are not completed within 12 months (unless extended or revoked by the court), the requirement remains ‘live’ and will need to be returned to the court for the requirement period to be extended so the remaining hours can be worked. Sentencers should keep this in mind when considering any other requirements to ensure that it is realistic for an offender to complete all unpaid work hours within the 12 month period.
Where an offender is already subject to an unpaid work requirement, new unpaid work hours imposed on an unpaid work requirement are additional, and separate, to the existing hours. The total number of unpaid work hours from two or more unpaid work requirements should not significantly exceed 300 hours. For further information, see the guidance on Totality.