Sentencing Act 2020

Provision for review of suspended sentence order with community requirements E+W

293 Power to provide for review of suspended sentence order E+W

(1) A suspended sentence order which imposes one or more community requirements may make provision for the order to be reviewed periodically (“provision for review”).

This is subject to subsection (3).

(2) Where an order contains provision for review, it must—

(a) specify the intervals at which the order is to be reviewed,

(b) provide for each review to be made, subject to section 295, at a hearing held for the purpose by the responsible court (a “review hearing”),

(c) require the offender to attend each review hearing, and

(d) provide for a report by an officer of a provider of probation services on the offender's progress in complying with the community requirements of the order [F1 (a “progress report”)] to be made to the responsible court before each review.

(3) If the suspended sentence order—

(a) imposes a drug rehabilitation requirement, and

(b) contains provision for review under this section,

the provision for review must not include provision relating to that requirement (but see paragraph 22 of Schedule 9 for separate provision about review of such a requirement).

(4) In this section “the responsible court” in relation to a suspended sentence order means—

(a) if a court is specified in the order in accordance with subsection (5), that court;

(b) otherwise, the court by which the order is made.

(5) Where—

(a) a suspended sentence order is made by a magistrates' court, and

(b) the offender's home local justice area is not the area in which the court acts,

the order may specify that the responsible court is to be a magistrates' court which acts in the offender's home local justice area.

(6) A suspended sentence order made on an appeal from—

(a) the Crown Court, or

(b) the Court of Appeal,

is to be taken for the purposes of subsection (4)(b) to have been made by the Crown Court.

[F2 (7) Nothing in this section applies in relation to suspended sentence orders which qualify for special procedures for the purposes of section 293A.]

Textual Amendments

F1 Words in s. 293(2)(d) substituted (28.6.2022) by Police, Crime, Sentencing and Courts Act 2022 (c. 32), s. 208(5)(aa), Sch. 21 para. 5

F2 S. 293(7) inserted (28.6.2022) by Police, Crime, Sentencing and Courts Act 2022 (c. 32), s. 208(5)(r), Sch. 14 para. 6

Modifications etc. (not altering text)

C1 S. 293 applied (with modifications) by 2006 c. 52, ss. 200, 203 (as amended (1.12.2020) by Sentencing Act 2020 (c. 17), s. 416(1), Sch. 25 paras. 19, 21 (with s. 416(7), Sch. 27); S.I. 2020/1236, reg. 2)

Commencement Information

I1 S. 293 in force at 1.12.2020 by S.I. 2020/1236, reg. 2

[F3 293A Review of suspended sentence order qualifying for special procedures E+W

(1) A suspended sentence order that—

(a) imposes one or more community requirements, and

(b) qualifies for special procedures for the purposes of this section,

may make provision for the order to be reviewed periodically (“provision for review”).

(2) Where a suspended sentence order contains provision for review under this section, it must—

(a) specify the intervals at which the order is to be reviewed,

(b) provide for each review to be made, subject to section 294, at a hearing held for the purpose by the responsible court (a “review hearing”),

(c) require the offender to attend each review hearing, and

(d) provide for a report by an officer of a provider of probation services on the offender’s progress in complying with the community requirements of the order (a “progress report”) to be made to the responsible court before each review.

(3) In this section “the responsible court”, in relation to a suspended sentence order, means the court by which the order is made.

(4) For more about suspended sentence orders that qualify for special procedures, see section 395A.]

Textual Amendments

F3 S. 293A inserted (28.6.2022) by Police, Crime, Sentencing and Courts Act 2022 (c. 32), s. 208(5)(r), Sch. 14 para. 7

294 Review hearings: power to amend community requirements etc E+W

(1) This section applies where a review hearing is held on a review of a suspended sentence order by virtue of section 293 [F4 or 293A].

(2) The court may, after considering the progress report, amend—

(a) the community requirements of the suspended sentence order, or

(b) any provision of the order which relates to those requirements.

(3) But the court—

(a) may not amend the community requirements of the order so as to impose a requirement of a different kind unless the offender expresses willingness to comply with that requirement,

(b) may not amend—

(i) a mental health treatment requirement,

(ii) a drug rehabilitation requirement, or

(iii) an alcohol treatment requirement,

unless the offender expresses willingness to comply with the requirement as amended,

(c) may amend the supervision period only if the period as amended complies with section 288(4),

(d) may not amend the operational period, and

(e) except with the consent of the offender, may not amend the order while an appeal against the order is pending.

(4) For the purposes of subsection (3)(a)—

(a) a community requirement of a kind within any entry in the table in section 287 is of the same kind as any other community requirement within that entry, and

(b) an electronic compliance monitoring requirement is a requirement of the same kind as any requirement within that table to which it relates.

(5) If the court is of the opinion that the offender has without reasonable excuse breached a community requirement of the order, the court may adjourn the hearing so that it can deal with the case [F5 forthwith] under paragraph 13 of Schedule 16 (powers of court to deal with offender on breach of requirement or subsequent conviction).

[F6 (5A) For some powers available where the court is of the opinion referred to in subsection (5) but does not deal with the case forthwith, see paragraph 9A of Schedule 16.]

(6) In this section—

• “review hearing”, and

• “progress report”,

have the meanings given by section 293(2) [F7 (or, as the case may be, section 293A(2)].

Textual Amendments

F4 Words in s. 294(1) inserted (28.6.2022) by Police, Crime, Sentencing and Courts Act 2022 (c. 32), s. 208(5)(r), Sch. 14 para. 8(2)

F5 Word in s. 294(5) inserted (28.6.2022) by Police, Crime, Sentencing and Courts Act 2022 (c. 32), s. 208(5)(r), Sch. 14 para. 8(3)

F6 S. 294(5A) inserted (28.6.2022) by Police, Crime, Sentencing and Courts Act 2022 (c. 32), s. 208(5)(r), Sch. 14 para. 8(4)

F7 Words in s. 294(6) inserted (28.6.2022) by Police, Crime, Sentencing and Courts Act 2022 (c. 32), s. 208(5)(r), Sch. 14 para. 8(5)

Commencement Information

I2 S. 294 in force at 1.12.2020 by S.I. 2020/1236, reg. 2

295 Suspended sentence order: alteration of periodic review arrangements E+W

(1) Subsections (2) and (3) apply where the court—

(a) considers the progress report relating to a review [F8 under section 293 or 293A] (the “current review”), and

(b) forms the opinion that the offender's progress in complying with the community requirements of the order is satisfactory.

(2) If the court forms that opinion before a review hearing is held at the current review—

(a) it may order that no review hearing is to be held at the current review, and

(b) it may amend the suspended sentence order so as to provide for each subsequent review to be held without a review hearing.

(3) If a review hearing is held at the current review, the court may at the hearing amend the suspended sentence order so as to provide for each subsequent review to be held without a review hearing.

(4) If at a review held without a review hearing the court—

(a) considers the progress report, and

(b) forms the opinion that the offender's progress under the order is no longer satisfactory,

it may require the offender to attend a hearing of the court at a specified time and place.

(5) At a review hearing the court may amend the suspended sentence order so as to vary the intervals specified under section 293(2)(a) [F9 or 293A(2)(a)].

(6) The functions of a court under this section that are exercisable in relation to a review without a hearing are to be exercised—

(a) in the case of the Crown Court, by a judge of the court, and

(b) in the case of a magistrates' court, by a justice of the peace.

(7) In this section—

• “review hearing”, and

• “progress report”,

have the meanings given by section 293(2) [F10 (or, as the case may be, section 293A(2))].

Textual Amendments

F8 Words in s. 295(1) inserted (28.6.2022) by Police, Crime, Sentencing and Courts Act 2022 (c. 32), s. 208(5)(r), Sch. 14 para. 9(2)

F9 Words in s. 295(5) inserted (28.6.2022) by Police, Crime, Sentencing and Courts Act 2022 (c. 32), s. 208(5)(r), Sch. 14 para. 9(3)

F10 Words in s. 295(7) inserted (28.6.2022) by Police, Crime, Sentencing and Courts Act 2022 (c. 32), s. 208(5)(r), Sch. 14 para. 9(4)

Commencement Information

I3 S. 295 in force at 1.12.2020 by S.I. 2020/1236, reg. 2