Women in Prison responds to new Sentencing Council guidance that recognises women’s lived realities

The Sentencing Council has this week announced new guidelines that acknowledge the realities of women’s lives and the root causes of their involvement in the criminal justice system. These guidelines recognise domestic abuse as a driver of crime and highlight the significant risks that prison poses to pregnant women, mothers, and their babies.

Coming into effect from April, the guidelines also emphasise the importance of pre-sentence reports for women—particularly those who are pregnant or postnatal, survivors of domestic abuse, experiencing mental ill-health, or from racially minoritised backgrounds.

In response to the Lord Chancellor’s comments on these guidelines today (Wednesday, 6 March 2025), Women in Prison has issued the following statement:

"The new guidelines from the Sentencing Council mark a significant and positive step towards addressing the harms of the criminal justice system on women—particularly Black, migrant, and racially minoritised women, who face disproportionate criminalisation."

"We do not agree with the Lord Chancellor’s suggestion that these guidelines create a ‘two-tier’ system, particularly for ethnic minorities. In reality, the evidence is clear: Black women and racially minoritised women are overrepresented at every stage of the criminal justice system. As highlighted by our partners, including Hibiscus Initiatives and others in the Women’s Justice Reimagined partnership, these women face the ‘double disadvantage’ of gender inequality and systemic racism when they come into contact with the justice system"

"Rather than creating division, these guidelines take an essential step towards fairness by recognising the entrenched inequalities that shape women’s experiences of the justice system. We hope this will lead to sentencing decisions that take women’s individual circumstances into account and reduce the unnecessary criminalisation of women."

ENDS

• The Women’s Justice Reimagined partnership is made up of Hibiscus Initiatives, Muslim Women In Prison, Zahid Mubarek Trust, Criminal Justice Alliance and Women In Prison

• Reports from Hibiscus Initiatives shows Black and racially minoritised women’s experiences of racism in the criminal justice system

• Women from minority ethnic groups are overrepresented at every stage of the criminal justice system. (Corporate report, A review of health and social care in women’s prisons, NHS, Nov 2023)

• Black women make up 8.9% of the prison population, but 3% of the general population. (able DC2101EW, Office for National Statistics (2012) 2011 Census; Table 1.4, Ministry of Justice (2016) Population bulletin: 31 March 2017)