Hi, I'm Mrs. Olchin, and I'm going to be taking you through this citizenship lesson.

I'll be explaining all of the information that you need, and I'll be pausing and telling you when you need to complete tasks.

Hope you enjoy the lesson.

This lesson is called "What is the Purpose of Sentencing?" And it comes from the unit "What Can We Do to Reduce Crime?" The outcome for this lesson is that by the end, you'll be able to explain why there are different types of sentencing and evaluate how effective each might be.

The keywords for today's lesson are sentence and this is the punishment given to a person found guilty in a court case.

Aggravating factors, these are the circumstances that increase the seriousness of the offence.

Mitigating factors, these are the circumstances that reduce the seriousness of the offence.

Rehabilitation and, in this context, it's a process of returning to, or helping someone to return to, a healthy or good way of life after they have offended.

And retribution, which is a response to criminal behaviour that focuses on holding offenders accountable through punishment.

So, what we're going to look at first in this lesson is what different types of sentencing are there? So, sentencing is a process of giving a punishment to a person that's been found guilty in a court case.

There are many different types of crime and many different reasons for criminality and therefore, there are many different types of sentencing to deal with these differences.

The sentence given should provide justice for the victim, but it should also deter others from committing the same crime.

That means put people off committing the same crime.

And it should also try to rehabilitate the offender.

So, there's lots of things that a sentence needs to try to achieve.

Let's have a look at our first check.

What are the missing words in this statement? Pause if you need to.

So, the sentence given should provide justice for the victim or victims. It should deter others from committing the same crime and rehabilitate the offender.

Well done if you got those right.

The most severe sentence an offender can be given is a custodial sentence.

So, the word custodial means that they are being sent to prison.

These sentences are given when the offender has committed a serious crime, if the public could be at risk if a custodial sentence wasn't given, or if the offender has broken the law a number of times.

So Andeep is asking, "How long can an offender be sent to prison for?" Pause and have a think about this if you like.

So, in the UK, the maximum sentence is a whole life order and this is where the offender will never leave prison unless in really exceptional and rare circumstances.

This is saved for the most serious, shocking, and violent crimes.

So that is the most highest level of sentence that can be given.

We also have life sentences.

This is another type of long sentence.

Here, the offender is given a long sentence and they must serve this in full before being considered for release.

So they have to do all of that time that's been given to them.

And then when they are released or if they are released, they will be on licence for the rest of their life, meaning that if they break the law, they will go straight back to prison because that's what being on licence means.

It means that even though you're released from prison, if you do anything to break the law again, you can be sent immediately back to prison, so it's almost like you're being trusted in the public to not break the law.

And we're being told here by law that according to the Ministry of Justices offender statistics, in the summer of 2023, there were 65 offenders with whole life orders.

So, this shows how sparingly that sentence is used.

So it's not used very often and it's saved for the absolute most severe and serious of cases.

We also have determinate prison sentences.

This is where time in prison is for a fixed length of time and normally, the offender may spend half of the time in prison and the remaining half back in the community on licence.

So, for example, someone might be given a four-year sentence, they might spend about two years in prison and then they might be released back into the community, but then they would be on licence for that remaining two years.

We also have indeterminate prison sentences, and this is where time in prison is not fixed.

So, offenders aren't actually given a release date.

Instead, they serve a set amount of time for a parole board, and then they will decide when it's safe for them to be released.

So the parole board, which is a group of professionals, they will think about how that prisoner has been behaving in prison, how well they're being rehabilitated, if they are a risk, and it will be the parole board that will decide on a release date for that prisoner.

Determinate prison sentences are the most common type of custodial sentence in the UK.

So the custodial sentence we've got there the first one where time in prison is for a fixed length of time, that is the most common type of custodial sentence that we have in the UK.

So, let's have a check.

Which custodial sentence is for a fixed length of time? Is it A, a whole life order, B, a determinate prison sentence, C, a life sentence, or D, indeterminate prison sentence? And it's B, determinate prison sentence.

An offender can also be given a community sentence.

You might have heard this being referred to as community service.

So, this is a punishment served within the community and community sentences aim to punish the offender but also support rehabilitation by giving them a way in which they can give back to communities.

So Andeep is asking, "Are community sentence a soft option?" And Sam is saying no, community sentences do still include a type of punishment, and there are set hours that must be completed.

So, community sentences aren't seen as a soft and easy option.

So, Andeep is asking what different types of community sentencing are there.

Pause and have a think about this if you like.

So it might be that the offender is given up to 300 hours of unpaid work, and that might be things such as cleaning graffiti off walls, it might be painting fences, it could be helping to pick litter, something that's going to help the community.

They could be made to follow a strict curfew such as not entering a certain place after a certain time, so seven o'clock at night or eight o'clock at night.

And that curfew is given to try and reduce the chances of them committing further crime.

With the offender's consent, they also might be asked to take part in a treatment programme.

So this might be support with their mental health or drug rehabilitation, with the idea being that this will support them and help them so that they are less likely to commit crime again.

So, let's have a look at different types of offending and what different types of sentencing this could result in.

So, Offender A was arrested for vandalising a shop front.

They were given a community sentence to carry out 150 hours of unpaid work, painting the local community center's fence.

The punishment aims to teach Offender A about community responsibility and also provides a service that the community can enjoy.

So, in this case here, the punishment that was given aimed to give back to the community.

That was seen as a sensible sentence for this type of crime.

So Andeep is asking, "What if Offender A doesn't turn up to their community service?" And Laura is answering that if the offender doesn't comply, they will be sent back to court and re-sentenced.

And this is what we mean about it not being a soft option.

It's not the choice of the offender.

If they can't be bothered to turn up one day or they oversleep, it's really, really strict in terms of the hours that must be completed.

And if they don't complete them and they don't comply and follow the rules, then they could be re-sentenced.

They could be given a harsher sentence, too.

The offender can also be given a sentence where they need to pay money.

And this is called a fine.

They're normally given when the crime is classed as lower-level such as speeding or theft.

So, you might have heard of someone receiving a speeding ticket where they have to pay a fine for breaking the speed limit.

And the fine amount will depend on the crime committed and the personal finances of the offender.

And payment plans can be arranged to support with payment.

And Sam is actually telling us that fines are the most common type of sentence in the UK.

This suggests that the majority of cases that end up in court are actually for lower-level crimes.

So, let's have a check.

Community sentences are a soft option.

Is that true, or is that false, and can you tell me why? It is false.

And why? Because community sentences are not a soft option.

They're for a set amount of hours, and they include a punishment, and they must be followed.

Sometimes, offenders might be discharged.

A discharge is a lenient sentence where the judge decides that no further action is needed.

There are two types of discharge.

So offenders could be given a conditional discharge.

So, no punishment is given, but it's on condition of something.

So, in this case, if the offender breaks a law again within a specified time, they'll be charged for the new crime and for the original crime.

So, this is a conditional discharge.

We also have absolute discharges and that's where no punishment at all is given as the judge feels like going through the court process was punishment enough.

So that could be someone where it was completely out of character, it was a very low-level crime and actually, the decisions made that just by having to go to court, that's punishment enough and no further action is needed.

Youth offenders, so young people under the age of 18 and over the age of 10 are dealt with differently.

They receive youth sentences which can include referral orders and this is where the young person works with a youth offender panel to come up with a range of rehabilitative and restorative actions to repair the harm caused.

So, really, really working with a young person to make sure that they are receiving a sentence but that's going to really rehabilitate them, too.

They might also be given a youth rehabilitation order.

So this is a type of community sentence that includes different actions to rehabilitate such as education, treatment programmes, and curfews.

So, like what we looked at before with adults can also happen for young people too.

So Andeep is asking, "Can youth offenders be sent to prison?" And Sofia's answering, "Not prison, but they can be given custodial sentences.

But rather than going to prison, they go to youth offending institutions if they're 15 to 18." And vulnerable young offenders could also go to a secure children's home or a secure training centre and that could be for younger children as well.

So, it is still custodial.

They are still being told to go somewhere away from their home and they are not able to leave that place, but they look and feel very different to adult prisons.

So, let's have a check.

Which type of sentence is being described? The young person works with a youth offender panel to come up with a range of rehabilitative and restorative actions.

Is that A, a secure training centre? Is it B, a referral order, or is it C, absolute discharge? And it's B, a referral order.

So, for this task, I want you to create a summary of the different types of sentencing.

And if you would like to, you can use the following sentence starters to help.

So try and tell me what custodial sentences are, what fines are, community sentences, what discharges are, and what are youth sentences are.

Please pause while you complete this task.

So, in your answer, you might have included that custodial sentences are the most severe punishments and it's where the offender goes to prison.

You might have talked about how fines are when the offender has to pay money, which is based on how severe the crime was and how much they earn.

And that community sentences are a punishment served within the community.

They aim to punish but also give something back to the community.

You might have talked about how a discharge is a more lenient sentence where the judge decides that no further action is needed and that youth sentences are for offenders under 18.

You might have talked about the things they include such as types of sentencing that will educate and rehabilitate.

And although custodial sentences can also be given, these do not take place in a prison, so you might have referred to that as well.

We're now going to look at what are sentencing guidelines.

Sentencing guidelines must be used by judges when they pass sentences.

They provide a clear guide that states the minimum and the maximum sentence that can be given for a particular crime.

They also provide clear guidance about the different factors that must be considered about each individual case when passing sentence.

And this ensures that sentencing is fair and consistent.

So Laura's asking, "So, can judges do what they want?" Andeep is saying, "What if a judge is in a bad mood? Does this mean they can send the offender to prison for the sake of it?" No, the law establishes sentencing ranges for each crime with set minimums and maximums, and this ensures judges or magistrates impose fair sentences within these limits.

So, for a particular crime, there's minimum and maximum sentences that can be given and the judge needs to make sure they fall somewhere within those guidelines.

They can't go below, and they can't go above and beyond.

And that ensures that things are fair.

And where they put the the crime within that sentence range is depending on them really drawing upon their experience.

So judges use their experience to weigh up the crime and offender's unique factors in determining which sentence is the most appropriate within that range.

So that's why judges need to be really experienced so they can make sure that they give the right sentence to the right person.

So, what will judges consider when they're making their decision about sentencing? Pause if you like to, to consider this yourselves.

So, judges will consider mitigating factors and these are the things that might reduce a sentence such if, you know, if it was a person's first offence, if the person surrendered themselves to the police, if the crime was nonviolent and if the person themselves actually came to the police station and admitted their guilt.

These are all things that the judge might use as mitigating factors that might make them veer towards the lesser part of the sentence within those guidelines.

But they will also consider aggravating factors.

So that might be things such as if the offender has committed this crime before, if they were resisting arrest or being violent during arrest and if there was lots of harm to the victim.

So, that could all lead to a harsher sentence.

So again, within those guidelines, this might mean that the judge more veers towards the harsher end of what they are able to give following the guidelines.

So, let's have a check.

Which could be considered as a mitigating factor? The offender pleads guilty at the earliest opportunity.

The offender threatened their victim.

The offender fled the scene of the crime.

And the answer is the offender pleads guilty at the earliest opportunity.

So, this is a mitigating factor that the judge might consider and it might make the sentence be slightly more lenient.

So Laura's asking, "Does this mean two people committing the same crime could receive different sentences?" And Andeep is saying yes, it does because no two crimes are the same.

So, two offenders could be found guilty of robbery.

Offender A could have used a weapon, significant force, and have caused serious physical and mental harm to the victim.

Whereas Offender B may have been pressured into committing the crime.

They might have used minimal force and caused no harm to the victim.

So, although they have both committed a robbery, actually, the crimes themselves can be quite different, and therefore, they would likely be given different sentences.

So, let's have a look at this in a bit more detail.

So Mr. Khan and Mr. Mosely have both stolen from a shop, but they have received different sentences.

And let's have a look at why.

So Mr. Khan takes items from the shelves but does not communicate with the cashier.

He runs from the shop but is stopped by the police.

But when stopped by the police, he hands himself in willingly.

He doesn't try to resist arrest.

And it is his first offence.

The judge might give him a community sentence.

Now, let's compare that for Mr. Mosely.

So Mr. Mosely smashes the shop window and threatens the cashier with a baseball bat.

When chased and caught by the police, he kicks them, and he's also been arrested for robbery before.

So rather than being calm like Mr. Khan, he's really resisting arrest there and causing quite a lot of problems for the police.

So, in this case, the judge might decide to pass a custodial sentence because what Mr. Mosely has done and how he has acted gives the judge reason to believe that that sentence is more appropriate.

Under sentencing guidelines, judges must also consider culpability and harm.

So, culpability is how blameworthy the offender is.

So, high culpability would refer to someone who willingly and deliberately committed the crime.

You know, they might have planned that crime.

There was lots, lots of premeditation there.

Whereas harm is the damage or impact caused by the crime.

And this includes physical, financial, and emotional harm.

So, cases where the harm was high would be more likely to receive harsher sentencing by the judges.

So, let's have a check.

Which factor could indicate low culpability? A, they planned the details of the crime.

B, they were pressured into committing the crime.

C, they persuaded others to join in with the crime.

And low culpability is B, they were pressured into committing the crime.

A and C are examples of high culpability.

So, for this task, you've been asked to write a short summary of the importance of sentencing guidelines that is going to be included in a training manual for new judges.

And Laura is reminding you to remember to include information about what judges must consider and also the reason why they use sentencing guidelines in the first place.

So, imagine you're writing a training manual for new judges that's going to really, really explain to them the importance of sentencing guidelines.

Pause while you complete this task.

So you may have included information such as what is here.

As a judge, it is vital that you follow sentencing guidelines as these ensure that the sentences you give are fair and consistent with other judges.

When deciding what sentence to give an offender, you must consider aggravating factors which include the factors that go against the offender as well as mitigating factors which indicate the offender is less to blame.

Culpability and harm to the victim must also be considered when making your decision about sentencing.

Following these guidelines ensures that the sentence fits the crime.

We are now going to have a look at what is needed, retribution or rehabilitation.

So, let's remind ourselves, rehabilitation is a process of returning to or helping someone return to a healthy or good way of life after they have offended.

Whereas retribution is a response to criminal behaviour that focuses on holding offenders accountable through punishment.

And there is debate about whether the main focus of sentencing should be on rehabilitation, retribution, or somewhere in the middle.

Sam and Andeep are debating the purpose of sentencing.

Sam is saying, "I think offenders should be given harsh sentences based on retribution.

If you choose to commit a crime, you should be imprisoned for your actions." If you like, pause and have a think about Sam's statement.

Do you agree? Do you disagree? Whereas Andeep is saying that he disagrees.

"Reasons for committing crime are complex and so we need to rehabilitate, not punish.

How else can we expect people to change their behaviour?" So again, if you want to, pause and consider whether you agree or disagree with his statement.

So, what are the arguments against retribution-focused sentencing? So, although harsher punishments hold offenders to account and they provide justice for the victims and they could potentially deter others from committing the same crime, so put people off committing the same crime, they can be sometimes seen as ineffective as they might not always really consider and address the root cause of the crime being committed in the first place.

So, let's have a check.

True or false? Retribution-focused sentencing has no drawbacks.

And it's false.

And why? Some people believe it does have drawbacks due to it not always addressing the root cause of crime.

So what are the arguments then for rehabilitation-focused sentencing? So, it focuses on addressing the root cause of the offence, which could reduce future crimes being committed.

Prisons are expensive to run, so rehabilitation could be seen as cost-effective because it may reduce the number of people in prison because they are really thinking about those root causes of that crime being committed and tackling them so they don't find their way back into prison again.

And some people also view it as a more humane form of punishment because you're looking at the whole person and trying to really address and change and help them with the behaviours that's led to them committing a crime in the first place.

But we need to make sure we're looking at both sides of the coin, so actually, some people do view rehabilitation-focused sentencing as ineffective, too, because it may not provide justice for the victims of crime.

So you can see that there are arguments for both.

The UK sentencing system is based on both retribution and rehabilitation.

And you see both of these within the sentencing that we use within this country.

So harsh sentences can and are given to offenders when the level and nature of the crime calls for it.

So judges can even pass whole life orders when needed, as we looked at earlier in the lesson.

But even in prison, there is rehabilitation, so there is education.

There is support in prison.

And for lower-level crimes, when the offender is vulnerable, rehabilitation-focused sentencing may be given.

However, even with these sentences, there is still a level of retribution.

So, for example, if we look at community sentencing, that does still include retribution.

There's still an element of punishment within those.

So, let's have a check.

Why might rehabilitation-focused sentencing be viewed as ineffective? A, may not provide justice for the victims of crime, B, may cost too much public money, or C, may increase the risk of repeat crime.

And it's A, may not provide justice for the victims of crime.

So, for this task, I want you to explain why people might agree and disagree with this statement, "Retribution is the best way to deal with offenders." You may wish to follow the structure below.

So, on the one hand, retribution-focused sentences can be effective because.

On the other hand, retribution-focused sentences can be ineffective because.

Really think about your critical thinking skills here and try and formulate arguments for both sides in this task.

And Andeep is reminding you to think about and include the different types of sentencing you've learned about during this lesson when you are making your arguments.

So pause while you attempt this task.

So these are some of the things that you might have included in your answer.

So, on the one hand, retribution-focused sentences can be effective because they provide justice for the victim.

So, when an offender is given a longer custodial sentence because of the harm caused to the victim, that provides that victim with some justice.

You might also talk about how long prison sentences can also keep dangerous criminals away from communities and deter others from committing the same crime.

Whereas on the other hand, retribution focused sentences can be ineffective because they don't tackle the root cause of crime.

If an offender goes to prison, they might not learn about the impact their crime has had, whereas a community sentence provides them and gives them that responsibility and gives something back to the community harmed by the crime in the first place.

So, in summary, for what is the purpose of sentencing, there are different types of sentences that can be given to offenders.

These include custodial sentences, community sentences, fines, and discharges.

Youth sentencing is slightly different and usually involves some type of youth order where they are given support by the youth justice system.

When deciding what sentence to give, judges must follow sentencing guidelines.

These include minimum and maximum terms as well as the individual mitigating and aggravating factors.

Sentences can provide both retribution and rehabilitation and there are positives and negatives for each type of sentencing.

Thank you for taking part in today's lesson and working hard.

We hope you come back and enjoy some more lessons soon.