When sentencing female offenders, courts should be aware that female offenders offend for different reasons than men and the impact of custodial sentences on female offenders is different. It is important for the court to ensure that it has sufficient information about a female offender’s background. As such, when considering a community or custodial sentence for a female offender, the court should ask Probation for a pre-sentence report. Courts should be aware of the following considerations when sentencing a female offender:
- Female offending is commonly linked to mental health, substance-misuse, or financial and homelessness issues, and female offenders are more likely than male offenders to be victims of domestic abuse or have experienced emotional, physical or sexual abuse as a child. Female offenders sentenced to custody are much more likely than male prisoners to suffer from anxiety or depression or attempt suicide. Women (typically aged 45 to 55) may suffer from the symptoms of perimenopause or menopause, which can affect their mood, mental health and behaviour.
- Women from an ethnic minority background in particular have distinct needs from both men from an ethnic minority background, and white women, and these should be considered before the imposition of a community or custodial sentence.
- Female offenders are more likely to be primary carers than male offenders. When mothers are sentenced to custody, only a very small percentage of children remain in their own home. Those dependent children are adversely impacted by having to adjust to new homes, new carers, and new educational establishments and are often separated from siblings. There is an emotional impact for those children resulting in shame, stigma, anger, grief and behavioural changes. Those dependent children consequently have an increased likelihood of committing criminal offences, mental health problems, substance misuse and other social issues.
- The impact of custody on pregnant offenders can be harmful for both the offender and the child. Women in custody are likely to have complex health needs which may increase the risks associated with pregnancy for both the offender and the child. There may also be difficulties accessing medical assistance or specialist maternity services in custody.
- There are only a small number of prisons for female offenders. Therefore, female offenders are more likely than male offenders to be imprisoned some distance from support networks of friends and family. This will impact on resettlement when they leave custody.
- Female offenders are at greater risk than male offenders of leaving custody without accommodation and being unemployed after release, leaving them vulnerable to further abuse and exploitation. A greater proportion of female offenders are unemployed when released than male offenders.
Courts should consider the research referenced in this guideline that short custodial sentences are generally less effective at reducing reoffending than community sentences, which can seek to better address the underlying causes of offending.