YOUTH CRIME: Board calls for differences in sentencing to be addressed

According to the board, sentencing between April and September 2002 showed significant variations in the use of custodial sentencing and community by courts, irrespective of the nature of offences.

The statistics, which are published by the board every six months, found that young people in the Northeast received one custodial sentence for every 13 community-based sentences. But young people in London were found to receive one custodial sentence for every six community sentences, which is higher than the England and Wales national average of one custodial to every eight community sentences.

London was closely followed by other metropolitan areas such as the West Midlands, which issued one custodial for every 6.7 community sentences, and the Northwest, which issued one custodial for every 7.1 community sentences.