By Jay Gormley, Julian V. Roberts, Jonathan Bild and Lyndon Harris

The deferred sentencing provision was introduced in 1973 to provide an opportunity for the offender to demonstrate a change in personal circumstances during the period of deferral. Compliance with requirements designed to promote desistance normally resulted in the imposition of an alternative to immediate imprisonment.

Guidance for courts regarding the use of deferral is provided by the Court of Appeal, the Sentencing Council, and the Crown Court Compendium. The Sentencing Council guidance advises that deferred sentences will be appropriate in only very limited circumstances. Some academics have questioned this restrictive view of the power to defer sentence. In addition, a number of groups have called for deferred sentencing to be used more frequently, and in particular for young adults, female offenders, pregnant offenders as well as individuals commencing or undertaking treatment. There are many gaps in our knowledge of how deferred sentencing currently operates. We know almost nothing about this little-known provision beyond the limited research summarised in this report. The report concludes by calling for better statistics relating to deferred sentencing and noting a number of key issues and research priorities.

Sentencing Academy. Dec.2020. 22p.