The changes to the Magistrates’ Courts Sentencing Guidelines and explanatory materials, which we consulted on in early 2020, are now in force from 1 October. The guidelines apply to all magistrates’ courts in England and Wales. The changes to the Breach of a community order guideline and Totality guideline will also apply in the Crown Court.

Updates apply to the following guidelines:

• Drive whilst disqualified
• Breach of a community order
• Totality

There are also some updates to explanatory materials for:

• The surcharge
• High income offenders
• ‘Totting up’ disqualifications

To further assist sentencers, the Council has now included a reference and link to the Equal Treatment Bench Book on any page of the explanatory materials that involves the exercise of judicial discretion.

Full details of the changes are set out in a separate document.

The changes made to the sentencing guidelines and explanatory materials are not expected to have a significant impact on correctional resources.