Knife and Offensive Weapon Sentencing Statistics: October to December 2021
Trends in cautioning and sentencing of knife and offensive weapon offences.
Applies to England and Wales
Documents
Details
Contents
2. Knife and offensive weapon offences overview
4. Offending History and Other Offences
5. Sentencing under Sentencing under section 315 of the Sentencing Act 2020
7. Future publications and contact details for any queries or feedback
This publication presents key statistics describing the trends in the number of offenders receiving cautions and convictions for
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possession of an article with a blade or point
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possession of an offensive weapon, or
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threatening with either type of weapon
in England and Wales. Please note that cases still awaiting final decisions are no longer accounted for using estimation methodology. These are generally cases in the latest periods and are now counted as ‘other’ disposals until final decisions are made unless separately specified.
Accompanying files
As well as this bulletin, the following products are published as part of this release:
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ODS format tables containing data on knife or offensive weapon offences up to the end of 2021
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An interactive table tool to look at previous offences involving possession of a blade, point or offensive weapon. The tool provides further breakdowns by gender, police identified ethnicity and prosecuting police force area. The data used in the tool is also included as a separate csv file.
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An interactive Sankey diagram looking at outcomes for offenders sentenced for these offences by whether or not they have a previous conviction or caution for possession of a blade, point or offensive weapon; which includes breakdowns by gender, age group and offence type.
Please note this publication covers data that is likely to be impacted from the effects of the COVID-19 pandemic. Comparisons of the latest year with 2019 and 2020 will be affected by changes during the COVID-19 pandemic, and quarterly comparisons and comparisons to 2019 may be used to highlight impacts where useful.
Main points
| Point | Change | Commentary |
|---|---|---|
| The number of knife and offensive weapon offences dealt with by the Criminal Justice System (CJS) has increased after a dip in 2020. | Increase | In 2021 19,543 knife and offensive weapon offences were formally dealt with by the CJS. This is an increase of 6% since 2020, which includes the dip in Q2 2020 after COVID restrictions were imposed but is 13% lower than in 2019 before the start of the pandemic and similar to the level seen in 2016. |
| The proportion of offenders receiving an immediate custodial sentence for a knife and offensive weapon offence decreased to 29% in 2021. | Decrease | This had been stable at around 37%-38% between 2017 and 2019 but dropped between then and 2021. In this period there was a corresponding increase in the proportion of offenders receiving a suspended sentence or, to a lesser extent, a community sentence. |
| For 71% of offenders this was their first knife or offensive weapon possession offence. | Decrease | The proportion of offenders for whom this is their first knife or offensive weapon possession offence has been decreasing over the last decade, from 77% in 2011 to 71% in 2021 but has been roughly stable since 2017. |
| The average custodial sentence received by offenders sentenced under Section 315 of the Sentencing Act 2020 was 7.4 months in 2021 | Decrease | This had risen from 7.2 months in 2016 (the first full year after the legislation was introduced) to 7.8 months in 2019 but has fallen in the last two years to the level seen in 2017. |
1. Statistician’s comment
This publication, covering the period to December 2021 continues to illustrate the effects of the COVID-19 pandemic. There are several possible impacts of the pandemic on the statistics. These include the impact of lockdowns, changes to court arrangements (such as court closures, pauses to jury trials, remote hearings), the re-opening of courts and the types of cases which were prioritised.
The number of knife and offensive weapon offences dealt with by the Criminal Justice System increased between 2013 (16,261 cases) to 2019 (22,452 cases). However, once restrictions were imposed in response to the pandemic, the number of cases dropped by 18%. In the most recent year, the number of cases dealt with has increased again to 19,543, 6% higher than 2020 and 13% lower than 2019. This highlights the number of knife and offensive weapon offences dealt with by the Criminal Justice System is showing signs of recovery, but the number of cases dealt with has not fully returned to levels shown before the pandemic started.
The proportion of offenders receiving immediate custody decreased from 38% in 2019 to 29% in 2021 with a corresponding increase in the proportion of offenders receiving a suspended sentence (25%, up from 20%) and community sentence (25%, up from 23%). It is likely this has been affected by changes during the pandemic, and the types of cases prioritised through the courts. This will continue to be assessed as court activity recovers.
2. Knife and offensive weapon offences overview
The number of knife and offensive weapon offences dealt with by the Criminal Justice System (CJS) has increased after a dip in 2020.
In 2021 19,543 knife and offensive weapon offences were formally dealt with by the CJS. This is an increase of 6% since 2020, which includes the dip in Q2 2020 after COVID restrictions were imposed but is 13% lower than in 2019 before the start of the pandemic and similar to the level seen in 2016.
Figure 1: Knife and offensive weapon offences by offence type, England and Wales, annually from 2011 (Source: Table 1a)
In March to June 2020, the first affected by COVID-19 restrictions, there was a 52% fall in the number of offences dealt with compared to the same quarter in 2019. This went back up in subsequent quarters, although the number of cases dealt with in each quarter has been falling again since Q4 2020. There were 4,693 cases dealt with in October to December 2021 which was only 10% lower than in the same quarter of 2019.
Figure 1 shows that the previous increase between 2014 and 2019 was driven by possession of an article with a blade or point offences, which increased 48% over the period, but in 2020 there was a decrease for all three offence types in the number of offences dealt with. For possession offence types, the number of cases dealt with increased again in 2021 compared with the previous year, blade or point by 8% and offensive weapon by 2%, but the number of threatening cases dealt with decreased by 10%.
This is reflected in recent police recorded crime figures published by the ONS which showed a 7% increase in the number of knife and offensive weapon offences recorded from 36,194 in 2020 to 38,786 in 2021. Furthermore, information published by the Home Office on “Crime outcomes in England and Wales” show that 50% of these offences resulted in a charge or police caution in the year ending March 2021.
3. Sentencing
The proportion of offenders receiving an immediate custodial sentence for a knife and offensive weapon offence decreased to 29% in 2021
This had been stable at around 37%-38% between 2017 and 2019 but dropped between then and 2021. In this period there was a corresponding increase in the proportion of offenders receiving a suspended sentence or, to a lesser extent, a community sentence.
Figure 2: Knife and offensive weapon offences by disposal type, England and Wales, annually from 2011 (Source: Table 1)
Between 2011 and 2018 there was an increase in the proportion of offenders receiving an immediate custodial sentence for a knife and offensive weapon offence, from 26% to 38%, which remained broadly stable at around 37% or 38% before falling to 29% in 2021. It is likely this has been affected by changes during the pandemic, and the types of cases prioritised through the courts. This will continue to be assessed as court activity recovers. The chart also shows that between 2019 and 2021 there were corresponding increases in the proportions of offenders receiving a suspended sentence (20% to 25%) or a community sentence (23% to 25%). The proportion of offenders who received a caution has generally decreased between 2011 and 2016 but has remained broadly stable between 11% and 13% since then.
Over the long-term, average custodial sentence length has generally increased, particularly for adults and possession of blade and point offences. However, in 2020 the average custodial sentence length for both possession of an article with a blade or point and possession of an offensive weapon both decreased; possession of blade or point offences from 7.3 to 6.9 months and possession of offensive weapon offences from 8.2 to 7.5 months. In 2021 average custodial sentence length for possession of blade or point offences increased again to 7.3 months, the joint highest in the series, while average custodial sentence length for possession of offensive weapon offences continued to decrease to 7.2 months. Average custodial sentence length for threatening offences has remained broadly stable at 13.3 or 13.4 months since 2019.
4. Offending History and Other Offences
For 71% of offenders this was their first knife or offensive weapon possession offence
The proportion of offenders for whom this is their first knife or offensive weapon possession offence has been decreasing over the last decade, from 77% in 2011 to 71% in 2021 but has been roughly stable since 2017.
The decrease in the proportion of first time knife and offensive weapon offenders has been seen for both adults and juveniles, with the proportion for adults decreasing from 74% to 68% between 2011 and 2021 and the proportion for 10 to 17 year olds decreasing from 89% to 83% over the same period.
Figure 3: Number of previous cautions or convictions for the possession of a knife or offensive weapon offence for offenders cautioned or convicted for a knife or offensive weapon offence, England and Wales, annually from 2011 (Source: Interactive Pivot Table Tool)
Figure 3 shows the number of cautions or convictions for a knife or offensive weapon offence, broken down by number of previous cautions or convictions for a knife or offensive weapon offence. Whilst the number of offenders with no previous knife and offensive weapon offence rose year on year between 2013 and 2019 (ending on 14,439), this made up a smaller proportion of offenders (as described above). The number of offenders with no previous knife and offensive weapon offence dipped in 2020, when fewer cases were dealt with, before rising to 12,636 in 2021.
A similar pattern can be seen in the number of offenders who have at least one previous knife or offensive weapon offence. A rise to 2019, a dip in 2020, rising again in 2021.
Since 2012 sentencing occasions involving knife and offensive weapon offences have been more likely than not to also involve other types of offences. The most common type of offence to be tried alongside a knife and offensive weapons offence is summary (excluding motoring), a category that includes common assault. 11% of offences on occasions involving knife and offensive weapon offences in 2021 were summary (excluding motoring) offences.
In 2011 the next most common type of offence to be tried alongside a knife and offensive weapons offence was theft offences (6%). This increased to 8% of offences on occasions involving knife and offensive weapon offences in 2017, but in 2021 this had dropped to 4%, the lowest in the series. Drugs offences, which increased over the period from 5% to 10% of offences on occasions involving knife and offensive weapon offences, and violence against the person offences, which increased from 4% in 2018 to 7% in 2021, are now more common.
5. Sentencing under Section 315 of the Sentencing Act 2020 (formerly Section 28 of the Criminal Justice and Courts Act 2015 (CJCA))
Following the commencement of Section 28 of the Criminal Justice and Courts Act 2015 (CJCA), a court must impose a minimum custodial sentence on an offender who has been convicted of a second or subsequent offence involving possession of a knife or offensive weapon. The court must impose the minimum sentence unless it would not be in the interest of justice to do so.
(Data presented in this section corresponds with tables 7, 8 and 9 - repeat possession offences under Section 315 of the Sentencing Act 2020 which exclude cautions, both when considering an individual’s offence history and as an outcome. They were first published in the Q2 2021 edition of the bulletin as Tables 7a, 8a and 9a alongside the previous versions of those tables (7, 8 and 9) which included cautions and now replace them.)
The average custodial sentence received by offenders sentenced under Section 315 of the Sentencing Act 2020 was 7.4 months in 2021.
This had risen from 7.2 months in 2016 (the first full year after the legislation was introduced) to 7.8 months in 2019 but has fallen in the last two years to the level seen in 2017.
Figure 4: Knife and offensive weapons possession sentencing occasions for adult repeat offenders, by disposal type, annually from 2016 (Source: Table 7)
In 2021 around three fifths (61%) of adult offenders sentenced under Section 315 of the Sentencing Act 2020 received an immediate custodial sentence. This has dropped from 72% in 2019. Overall, 85% of adult offenders sentenced under Section 315 of the Sentencing Act 2020 in 2021 received some form of custodial sentence, either immediate custody or a suspended sentence.
Please note, however, that 2021 has a much higher number of cases referred to the Crown Court and awaiting sentencing than previous years and the picture may change once these cases receive final decisions.
For 16- and 17-year olds, in 2021 32% of offenders sentenced under Section 315 of the Sentencing Act 2020 received an immediate custodial sentence. The proportion of 16-17-year-old offenders dealt with under the legislation receiving an immediate custodial sentence fell from 56% in 2019 to 35% in 2020 when the pandemic started. (back to top)
6. Further information
Tables 7, 8 and 9 relate to repeat possession offences under Section 315 of the Sentencing Act 2020 (formerly section 28 of the Criminal Justice and Courts Act 2015 (CJCA)) and exclude cautions, both when considering an individual’s offence history and as an outcome. They were first published in the Q2 2021 edition of the bulletin as Tables 7a, 8a and 9a alongside the previous versions of those tables (7, 8 and 9) which included cautions and now replace them.
The data presented in this publication are provisional and updated in each publication. Figures provided for more recent quarters are subject to change in future publications as ongoing cases pass through the Criminal Justice System.
A technical guide provides further information on how the data is collected and processed, as well as information on the revisions policy and legislation relevant to knife and offensive weapon sentencing.
Official Statistics status
Official statistics are produced under the remit of the Code of Practice for Official Statistics. They are produced impartially and are free from political influence. More information can be found on the UK Statistics Authority website
7. Future publications
Next update: 18 August 2022
Our statisticians regularly review the content of publications. Development of new and improved statistical outputs is usually dependent on reallocating existing resources. As part of our continual review and prioritisation, we welcome user feedback on existing outputs including content, breadth, frequency and methodology. Please send any comments you have on this publication including suggestions for further developments or changes in content.
Contact
Press enquiries should be directed to the Ministry of Justice press office:
Tel: 020 3334 3536
Email: newsdesk@justice.gov.uk
Other enquiries about, or feedback on, these statistics should be directed to the Data and Analysis division of the Ministry of Justice:
Fazeen Khamkar,
Ministry of Justice,
102 Petty France,
London,
SW1H 9AJ
Email: statistics.enquiries@justice.gov.uk
© Crown copyright Produced by the Ministry of Justice. Alternative formats are available on request from statistics.enquiries@justice.gov.uk
8. Pre-release access
The bulletin was produced and handled by the ministry’s analytical professionals and production staff. Prior to publication pre-release access of up to 24 hours was granted to the following persons:
Ministry of Justice:
Lord Chancellor and Secretary of State for Justice; Parliamentary Under Secretary of State – covering youth justice; Parliamentary Under Secretary of State – covering sentencing; Permanent Secretary; Minister and Permanent Secretary Private Secretaries (6); Special Advisors (2); Grade 6, Sentencing Policy Unit; Deputy Director for Bail, Sentencing and Release Policy; Head of Custodial Sentencing Policy Unit; Senior Policy Advisor, Custodial Sentencing Policy Unit; Policy Advisor, Custodial Sentencing Unit; Head of Youth Justice Policy; Senior Policy Advisor, Youth Sentencing; Head of News and relevant press officers (5).
Youth Justice Board:
Data Analyst, YJB Information and Analysis.
Home Office:
Home Secretary; Parliamentary Under Secretary of State for Safeguarding; Parliamentary Under Secretary of State for Crime and Policing; Minister Private Secretaries (4); Special Advisors (3); Head of Serious Violence Unit; Head of Knife Crime Team; Policy Advisor, Serious Violence Unit; Statistician, Violent Crime; and relevant press officers (3).
Cabinet Office:
Deputy Director, Number 10 Delivery Unit; Senior Delivery Analyst, Number 10 Delivery Unit.