Knife and Offensive Weapon Sentencing Statistics: July to September 2020
Trends in cautioning and sentencing of knife and offensive weapon offences.
Documents
Details
Contents
2. Knife and offensive weapon offences overview
5. Sentencing under section 28 of the Criminal Justice and Courts Act (CJCA) 2015
7. Future publications and contact details for any queries or feedback
This publication presents key statistics describing the trends in the number of offenders receiving cautions and convictions for
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possession of an article with a blade or point
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possession of an offensive weapon, or
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threatening with either type of weapon
in England and Wales. It should be noted that figures for the latest year have been estimated and should be treated as provisional. Please refer to the technical guide for further details.
Accompanying files
As well as this bulletin, the following products are published as part of this release:
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ODS format tables containing data on knife or offensive weapon offences up to September 2020
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An interactive table tool to look at previous offences involving possession of a blade, point or offensive weapon. The tool provides further breakdowns by gender, police identified ethnicity and prosecuting police force area. The data used in the tool is also included as a separate csv file.
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An interactive Sankey diagram looking at outcomes for offenders sentenced for these offences by whether or not they have a previous conviction or caution for possession of a blade, point or offensive weapon; which includes breakdowns by gender, age group and offence type.
The period covered by this publication includes the second quarter of data since restrictions were put in place in response to the COVID-19 pandemic from March 2020. Where possible, the publication highlights the impact by presenting quarterly changes in addition to the usual year-on-year comparisons.
Main points
| Point | Change | Commentary |
|---|---|---|
| The number of knife and offensive weapon offences dealt with by the Criminal Justice System (CJS) had been increasing since 2014 but has stabilised in the latest year. | Decrease | In the year ending September 2020 18,108 knife and offensive weapon offences were formally dealt with by the CJS, a decrease of 19% since the year ending September 2019. Last quarter, April to June 2020, was the first affected by COVID-19 restrictions and there was a 51% fall in the number of offences dealt with compared to the same quarter in 2019. In this quarter the number of offences were back up, but there was still an 8% decrease compared to July to September 2019. |
| The proportion of offenders receiving an immediate custodial sentence for a knife and offensive weapon offence decreased to 30% in the last quarter | Decrease | This has decreased from 37% in the same quarter last year. The custody rate was particularly high in April to June 2020 due to the prioritisation of cases being heard at court. |
| For 71% of offenders this was their first knife or offensive weapon possession offence. | Decrease | The proportion of offenders for whom this is their first knife or offensive weapon possession offence has decreased over the last decade, from 80% in the year ending September 2010 to 71% in the year ending September 2020. |
| The average custodial sentence received by offenders sentenced under section 28 of the Criminal Justice and Courts Act 2015 was 7.7 months in the year ending September 2020. | Increase | This has risen since the year ending September 2017, first full year for which figures are published on cases dealt with under the legislation, where it was 7.2 months, but has remained broadly stable since year ending September 2018. |
1. Statistician’s comment
Today’s publication, covering the period to September 2020, is the second to contain a full quarter affected by the COVID-19 pandemic. This quarter the number of cases being dealt with has increased but is still 8% lower than the same quarter in 2019.
This quarter the custody rate has also fallen to 30%. Last quarter there was a steeper than expected increase in the custody rate, this is likely to have been influenced by the prioritisation of offences most likely to result in custody. The decrease in this quarter is likely to be due to the backlog of less serious cases that were dealt with.
The impact of the pandemic is likely to continue to affect these statistics and drive short-term trends in future periods as we see the recovery in subsequent quarters.
2. Knife and offensive weapon offences overview
The number of knife and offensive weapon offences dealt with by the Criminal Justice System (CJS) has been increasing since 2014 but has stabilised in the latest year.
Figure 1: Knife and offensive weapon offences by offence type, England and Wales, annually from year ending September 2010 (Source: Table 1a)
In the year ending September 2020 18,108 knife and offensive weapon offences were formally dealt with by the CJS, a decrease of 19% since the year ending September 2019.
Last quarter, April to June 2020, was the first affected by COVID-19 restrictions and there was a 51% fall in the number of offences dealt with compared to the same quarter in 2019. In this quarter the number of offences were back up, but there was still an 8% decrease compared to July to September 2019.
Figure 1 shows that the previous increase since 2013 was driven by possession of an article with a blade or point offences, but in the most recent quarter possession of an article with a blade or point (9%), possession of an offensive weapon (6%) and threatening with a knife or offensive weapon (22%) have all decreased compared to the same quarter last year.
Recent police recorded crime figures showed a 5% decrease in the number of knife and offensive weapon offences recorded from 38,602 in the year ending June 2019 to 36,841 in the year ending June 2020. Furthermore, information published by the Home Office on “Crime outcomes in England and Wales” show that 50% of these offences resulted in a charge or police caution in the year ending March 2020.
3. Sentencing
The proportion of offenders receiving immediate custodial sentences fell slightly to 35% in year ending September 2020, having remained stable at around 38% in the previous two years. In the last quarter the custody rate has decreased to 30%, following a quarter (April to June) in which the custody rate was higher than usual, at 42%.
Figure 2: Knife and offensive weapon offences by disposal type, England and Wales, annually from year ending September 2010 (Source: Table 1)
Between the year ending September 2010 and the year ending September 2018 there was an increase in the proportion of offenders receiving an immediate custodial sentence for a knife and offensive weapon offence, from 23% to 38%. The trend was broadly stable for two years but fell slightly to 35% in year ending September 2020. In recent quarters there have been changes due to the pandemic. In March to April 2020 there was a high custody rate (42%) and in the most recent quarter this has reduced to 30%. The custody rate is likely to have increased in April to June 2020 due to the prioritisation of cases being heard at court, so that the most serious offences were dealt with first.
The increase in average custodial sentence length between the year ending September 2010 and the year ending September 2020 was seen in all age groups and most offence types but particularly for adults, for whom it increased from 6.5 months to 8.0 months, and for possession of blade or point offences, where it increased from 5.6 months to 7.4 months.
4. Offending History
For 71% of offenders this was their first knife or offensive weapon possession offence
The proportion of offenders for whom this is their first knife or offensive weapon possession offence has been decreasing over the last decade, from 80% in the year ending September 2010 to 71% in the year ending September 2020.
The decrease in the proportion of first time knife and offensive weapon offenders has been seen for both adults and 10 to 17 year olds, with the proportion for adults decreasing from 77% to 68% between the year ending September 2010 and the year ending September 2020 and the proportion for 10 to 17 year olds decreasing from 90% to 83% over the same period.
Figure 3: Number of previous cautions or convictions for the possession of a knife or offensive weapon offence for offenders cautioned or convicted for a knife or offensive weapon offence, England and Wales, annually from year ending September 2010 (Source:Interactive Pivot Table Tool)
Figure 3 shows the number of previous cautions or convictions for the possession of a knife or offensive weapon, broken down by number of previous convictions. Figures for the most recent year show a fall across all groups compared to 2019.
5. Sentencing under section 28 of the Criminal Justice and Courts Act (CJCA) 2015
Following the commencement of section 28 of the CJCA 2015, a court must impose a minimum custodial sentence on an offender who has been convicted of a second or subsequent offence involving possession of a knife or offensive weapon. The court must impose the minimum sentence unless it would not be in the interest of justice to do so.
The average custodial sentence received by offenders sentenced under section 28 of the Criminal Justice and Courts Act 2015 was 7.7 months in the year ending September 2020.
This has risen since the year ending September 2017, the first full year for which figures are published on cases dealt with under the legislation, where it was 7.1 months. Over the same time period the average custodial sentence length has increased from 7.2 to 7.8 months for adults, and for 16 and 17 year olds rose to 7.6 months in the year ending September 2018 before falling back to 6.5 months in the year ending September 2020.
Figure 4: Knife and offensive weapons possession sentencing and cautioning occasions for adult repeat offenders, by disposal type, year ending September 2014 and annually from year ending June 2017 (Source: Interactive Pivot Table Tool and Table 7)
In the year to September 2014, prior to the introduction of this legislation, half (50%) of adult knife and offensive weapons possession offenders with at least one previous knife and offensive weapons possession offence received an immediate custodial sentence. In the year ending September 2020 two thirds (65%) of adult offenders sentenced under section 28 of the CJCA 2015 received an immediate custodial sentence. Overall 86% of adult offenders sentenced under section 28 of the Criminal Justice and Courts Act 2015 in the year ending September 2020 received some form of custodial sentence, either immediate custody or a suspended sentence, compared to 69% of adult offenders with at least one previous knife and offensive weapons offence in the year ending September 2014.
For 16 and 17 year olds, in the year ending September 2020 39% of offenders sentenced under section 28 of the CJCA 2015 received an immediate custodial sentence compared to 31% of 10 to 17 year old knife and offensive weapons possession offenders with at least one previous knife and offensive weapons possession offence in the year ending September 2014.
6. Further information
The data presented in this publication are provisional and updated in each publication. Figures provided for more recent quarters are subject to change in future publications as ongoing cases pass through the Criminal Justice System.
A technical guide provides further information on how the data is collected and processed, as well as information on the revisions policy and legislation relevant to knife and offensive weapon sentencing.
Official Statistics status
Official statistics are produced under the remit of the Code of Practice for Official Statistics. They are produced impartially and are free from political influence. More information can be found on the UK Statistics Authority website
7. Future publications
Next update: 20 May 2021
Our statisticians regularly review the content of publications. Development of new and improved statistical outputs is usually dependent on reallocating existing resources. As part of our continual review and prioritisation, we welcome user feedback on existing outputs including content, breadth, frequency and methodology. Please send any comments you have on this publication including suggestions for further developments or changes in content.
Contact
Press enquiries should be directed to the Ministry of Justice press office:
Tel: 020 3334 3536
Email: [email protected]
Other enquiries about, or feedback on, these statistics should be directed to the Justice Statistics Analytical Services division of the Ministry of Justice:
Chandni Lakhani,
Ministry of Justice,
102 Petty France,
London,
SW1H 9AJ
Email: [email protected]
© Crown copyright Produced by the Ministry of Justice. Alternative formats are available on request from [email protected]
8. Pre-release access
The bulletin was produced and handled by the ministry’s analytical professionals and production staff. Prior to publication pre-release access of up to 24 hours was granted to the following persons:
Ministry of Justice:
Lord Chancellor and Secretary of State for Justice; Parliamentary Under Secretary of State – covering youth justice; Parliamentary Under Secretary of State – covering sentencing; Permanent Secretary; Minister and Permanent Secretary Private Secretaries (9); Special Advisors (2); Deputy Director for Bail, Sentencing and Release Policy; Senior Policy Advisor, Custodial Sentencing Policy Unit; Policy Advisor, Youth Sentencing; Head of News and relevant press officers (4).
Youth Justice Board:
Data Analyst, YJB Information and Analysis.
Home Office:
Home Secretary; Parliamentary Under Secretary of State for Safeguarding; Parliamentary Under Secretary of State for Crime, Policing and the Fire Service; Minister Private Secretaries (4); Special Advisor; Assistant Private Secretary to the Special Advisors; Head of Serious Violence Unit; Policy Advisor, Serious Violence Unit; Statistician, Violent Crime; and relevant press officers (2).
Cabinet Office:
Private Secretary to the Prime Minister; Principal Analyst, Prime Minister’s Implementation Unit.