Principles and Purposes of Sentencing

Date: 2nd October 2017
Category: Child justice system

The Scottish Sentencing Council is conducting a public consultation seeking views on its first draft sentencing guidelines which seeks to define the fundamental principles and purposes of sentencing.

Although some guidance on appropriate sentences in particular cases is available in the form of court decisions, the fundamental principles and purposes of sentencing in Scotland have not been expressly defined in any single piece of legislation or court judgment.

These guidelines are therefore intended to:

• provide judges and the public with a clear statement about the aims of current sentencing practice in the Scottish courts
• increase transparency by providing the public with an understanding of the approach taken by judges when deciding decisions
• promote consistency in the approaches taken by judges to sentencing

Read more about this and respond to the consultation here.