Scottish government’s community justice aims not yet being met

The Community Justice (Scotland) Act was introduced in 2016 and established a new national body, Community Justice Scotland, and 30 community justice partnerships (CJPs). A briefing published by Audit Scotland says that since the new legislation was enacted:

• Scotland’s incarceration rate remains among the highest in Western Europe. Prison numbers have fallen during the Covid-19 pandemic, mainly due to early release and reduced court capacity. But based on current sentencing patterns, and as court capacity recovers, prison numbers are likely to rise again in future.
• Community justice sentences have been shown to be more effective at reducing reoffending and less costly than prison. In 2017/18, 49 per cent of prisoners serving a short sentence were reconvicted within a year of their release, compared with 30 per cent of offenders who completed a community sentence.
• Little progress has been made in increasing the proportion of offenders given community sentences, as opposed to custody. In 2016/17, 59 per cent received a community sentence. This fell to 55 per cent in 2018/19 before returning to 59 per cent in 2019/20.

The briefing also says it is not clear whether roles and accountability arrangements between Community Justice Scotland and the CJPs are well understood and working effectively. There are also regional variations in the use of community sentences, and data deficiencies mean progress on national community justice outcomes is not being measured effectively.

Stephen Boyle, Auditor General for Scotland, said: “Reducing reoffending by shifting the balance of sentencing from prison to the community has the potential to reduce the costs to the individual, taxpayer and wider society. But that Scottish Government aim hasn’t yet been achieved.

“Moving forward, it’s important that everyone involved in improving our justice system gains a better understanding of the factors that have contributed to successful community sentences.”

Scottish Liberal Democrat justice spokesperson Liam McArthur MSP said: “Reform of community justice has been shamefully slow.

“We talk about being a progressive country, but Scottish prisons are some of the most overcrowded in Europe. While it will always be necessary to lock up more serious criminals, we know that in many cases community sentences are more effective at reducing reoffending. This report shows that the Scottish government are failing to make progress with those options.

“Making communities safer isn’t as simple as locking people up and throwing away the key. That kind of short-sighted thinking just stores up problems for the future.

“Scottish Liberal Democrats are committed to delivering robust community sentences as part of a progressive and effective justice system. The Scottish government need to show the same.”

Scottish Labour’s justice spokesperson Pauline McNeill said: “This report should be a wake-up call for the Scottish government and all those committed to improving our justice system.

“It has been five years since the Parliament agreed this important law but it seems the SNP have made no progress towards making it a reality.

“Many of our prisons are extremely overcrowded, made worse by the high levels of people held on remand in Scotland. Community justice, particularly for those who have not been convicted of a violent crime, must become more widely used. Evidence suggests that community justice sentences are effective at reducing reoffending as well as being less costly to the taxpayer.

“We need a real strategy to deliver on the ambitions of this crucial legislation and make the long overdue move towards community justice that we need to see.”