Question to the Ministry of Justice:

To ask the Secretary of State for Justice, what assessment he has made of the effectiveness of community sentences at reducing reoffending rates.

This Government is committed to tackling the causes of reoffending to keep our communities safe by addressing the complex issues that lead to offending, while also strengthening the supervision of offenders in the community. Since 2009/10, the proven reoffending rate for adults serving a sentence in the community (i.e. a community order or suspended sentence order) has fallen by 7.2 percentage points (from 36.2% in 2009/10 to 29.0% in 2019/20). Over the same time period, the overall reoffending rate has fallen from 31% to 26%.

Sentencing in individual cases is a matter for our independent courts. Community sentences can and should be tailored to address the individual needs, as well as to punish offenders and provide reparation to the community. Evidence suggests that community sentences, in certain circumstances, are more effective in reducing reoffending than short custodial sentences.

In September 2020 we published the Sentencing White Paper which set out our plans for more robust and effective community sentencing. We have delivered many of these reforms in the Police, Crime, Sentencing, and Courts (PCSC) Act 2022. This includes piloting Problem-Solving Courts (PSCs) which will trial innovative incentives and sanctions to improve compliance with court orders, reduce reoffending, and support rehabilitation. The PCSC Act also enables closer supervision of certain offenders, and the option for more robust and flexible use of electronically monitored curfews. The rollout of the Alcohol Abstinence and Monitoring Requirement last year provides an option to directly tackle alcohol related offending, imposing an alcohol ban for up to 120 days; on 97% of the days monitored the ban was complied with.