Knife and Offensive Weapon Sentencing Statistics: October to December 2022
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
5. Sentencing under 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 December 2022
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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.
This publication covers the period from 2012 to 2022. In the last three years of this period the work of the courts has been impacted by the restrictions imposed in response to the COVID pandemic, which led to court closures and subsequent backlogs, as well as any effects of the industrial action by criminal barristers taking place between April 2022 and October 2022. This should be borne in mind when making comparisons.
Main points
| Point | Change | Commentary |
|---|---|---|
| The number of knife and offensive weapon offences dealt with by the Criminal Justice System (CJS) has decreased since 2021 but is still higher than at the very start of the pandemic. | Decrease | In 2022 19,292 knife and offensive weapon offences were dealt with by the CJS. This is a decrease of 2% from 2021, and a decrease of 14% from 2019 before the pandemic; but is 4% higher than 2020 when the work of the courts was impacted by the restrictions imposed. |
| The proportion of offenders receiving an immediate custodial sentence for a knife and offensive weapon offence fell from 38% in 2019 to 30% 2022. | Decrease | This had been broadly stable at around 37%-38% between 2017 and 2019 before falling over subsequent years to 30% in 2022. In this period there was a corresponding increase in the proportion of offenders receiving a suspended sentence from 20% in 2019 to 25% in 2022. |
| For 70% 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 decreased over the last decade, from 75% in 2012 to 70% in 2022 but has been broadly stable between 71% and 70% since 2019. |
| The average custodial sentence received by offenders convicted for repeat possession offences under Section 315 of the Sentencing Act 2020 was 7.7 months in 2022. | Increase | This had decreased from 7.8 months in 2019 to 7.4 months in both 2020 and 2021 but increased again in 2022. |
1. Statistician’s comment
This publication covers the period to the end of 2022. It now includes analysis of single threatening offences dealt with under the Sentencing Act 2020. This is discussed further in Chapter 5. Figures from 2020 onwards have been impacted first by the effects of the Covid-19 pandemic and the lockdown restrictions imposed (court closures, pauses to jury trials and remote hearings, prioritisation of cases as courts reopened). Figures for Q2 and Q3 2022 may have been impacted by industrial action taken by the Criminal Bar Association.
Over the most recent year, the number of knife and offensive weapon cases dealt with decreased by 2% to 19,292; a reduction which may in part be due to the industrial action mentioned above. Prior to the pandemic, between 2013 and 2019, there had been an increase of 38% in the number of cases dealt with by the Criminal Justice System. The impact of pandemic restrictions led to a decrease of 18% in the number of cases dealt with in 2020. The fall over the latest year comes after a 6% increase in the number of cases dealt with between 2020 and 2021 as courts reopened. The number of cases dealt with in 2022 is 14% lower than in 2019 before the pandemic started.
The proportion of offenders receiving immediate custody in 2022 was 30%. This was 2 percentage points lower than in 2021. Between 2017 and 2019 it had been around 37-38%. A corresponding increase is evident in the proportion of offenders receiving a suspended sentence (25% in 2022, up from 20% in 2019). It is likely this has been affected by changes as a result of the pandemic.
2. Knife and offensive weapon offences overview
The number of knife and offensive weapon offences dealt with by the Criminal Justice System (CJS) has decreased since 2021 but is higher than at the start of the pandemic.
In 2022 19,292 knife and offensive weapon offences were dealt with by the CJS. This is a decrease of 2% from 2021, and a decrease of 14% from 2019 before the pandemic started; but is 4% higher than in 2020 when the work of the courts was impacted by the restrictions imposed.
Figure 1: Knife and offensive weapon offences by offence type, England and Wales, annually from 2012 (Source: Table 1a)
Figure 1 shows that the previous increase between 2013 and 2019 was driven by possession of an article with a blade or point offences, which increased 52% over the period compared to 9% for possession of offensive weapon offences. In 2020 there was a decrease for all three offence types as the work of courts was restricted by lockdown measures. Possession of blade or point offences increased the most between 2020 and 2021 as restrictions eased (9% compared to 3% for possession of offensive weapon offences) and was the only offence type to see an increase in the number of offences dealt with between 2021 and 2022.
The changes described in possession of blade or point offences, mean this offence type now accounts for a bigger proportion of knife and offensive weapon offences. In 2022 they accounted for nearly 7 in 10 (69%) knife and offensive weapon offences dealt with compared to 57% in 2012, while possession of offensive weapon offences accounted for 29% of knife and possession of offensive weapon offences dealt with in 2022 compared to 43% 2012.
Recent police recorded crime figures published by the ONS showed a 21% increase in the number of knife and offensive weapon offences recorded from 37,956 in 2021 to 45,824 in 2022. The increase may reflect an increase in police activity following the pandemic. This is not yet reflected in the figures for cases dealt with by the courts. The difference may be due to several factors. For example, the increase in recorded offences may not have fed through to offences dealt with by the courts or there may have been a reduction in the proportion of these offences resulting in a charge or caution. Information published by the Home Office on “Crime outcomes in England and Wales” show that 43% of these offences resulted in a charge or police caution in the year ending March 2022.This is down from 50% in year ending March 2021.
3. Sentencing
The proportion of offenders receiving an immediate custodial sentence for a knife and offensive weapon offence fell from 38% in 2019 to 30% 2022.
This had been broadly stable at around 37%-38% between 2017 and 2019 before falling over subsequent years to 30% in 2022. In this period there was a corresponding increase in the proportion of offenders receiving a suspended sentence from 20% in 2019 to 25% in 2022.
Figure 2: Knife and offensive weapon offences by disposal type, England and Wales, annually from year 2012 (Source: Table 1)
Between 2012 and 2017 there was an increase in the proportion of offenders receiving an immediate custodial sentence for a knife and offensive weapon offence, from 28% to 37%, then remained broadly stable at around 37% to 38% until 2019 before falling to 30% in 2022. 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.
The proportion of adults receiving immediate custody followed a similar trend, remaining stable at 43% to 45% between 2017 and 2019 before falling over subsequent years to 35% in 2022. For 10–17-year-olds, the proportion receiving immediate custody fell from 12% in 2019 to 6% in both 2021 and 2022.
Figure 2 shows between 2019 and 2022 there was a corresponding increase in the proportion of offenders receiving a suspended sentence (20% to 25%), making it the second most common disposal in 2022. Please note, the picture for this latest year could potentially change as cases referred to the Crown Court for sentencing receive final decisions.
The proportion of offenders who received a caution generally decreased between 2012 and 2016 but has remained stable between 11% and 13% since then.
Average custodial sentence length has generally increased over time, particularly for adults and possession of blade and point offences. However, between 2019 and 2021 the average custodial sentence length for both possession of an article with a blade or point and possession of an offensive weapon decreased and became more similar; possession of blade or point offences from 7.3 months in 2019 to 7.2 months and possession of offensive weapon offences from 8.1 months to 7.1 months. In 2022 average custodial sentence length for possession of blade or point offences increased again to 7.5 months, the highest in the series; while average custodial sentence length for possession of offensive weapon offences increased, but only to 7.4 months, and remained lower than before the pandemic. Average custodial sentence length for threatening offences has been over 13 months since 2019, but at 14.0 months in 2022 was the highest level since threatening offences were introduced in December 2012. Please note the small numbers involved make the figures for threatening offences more volatile than the figures for other offence types.
Average custodial sentence length for adults increased from 7.1 months in 2012 to 7.8 months in 2022, whilst average custodial sentence length for 10–17-year-olds generally decreased from 8.0 months in 2012 to 6.8 months in 2022. Please note that figures for 10–17-year-olds are more volatile, with a smaller number of cases, and were particularly high in 2012 and 2013.
4. Offending History
For 70% 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 75% in 2012 to 70% in 2022 but has been broadly stable between 71% and 70% since 2019.
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 72% to 67% between 2012 and 2022 and the proportion for 10- to 17-year-olds decreasing from 89% to 80% 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 2012 (Source: Interactive Pivot Table Tool)
Whilst the number of offenders with no previous knife and offensive weapon offence rose year on year between 2013 and 2019 (ending on 14,443), this made up a smaller proportion of offenders. The number of offenders with no previous knife and offensive weapon offence fell to 12,042 in 2020, when fewer cases were dealt with, before rising again. Although there was a subsequent decrease between 2021 and 2022 the number of offenders in 2022 with no previous cautions or convictions for a knife or offensive weapon offence was 12,215 and still higher than in 2020.
A similar pattern can be seen in the number of offenders who have at least one previous knife or offensive weapon offence. A rise between 2014 to 2019, a fall to 2020, followed by increases over the next two years to 2022.
5. Sentencing under the Sentencing Act 2020
A court must impose a minimum custodial sentence on an offender who has been convicted of a second or subsequent offence of possession of a knife or offensive weapon unless it would not be in the interest of justice to do so. The minimum sentence provisions were first introduced in 2015 by the Criminal Justice and Courts Act 2015 but have since been repealed and replaced by s315 of the Sentencing Act 2020 . The Sentencing Act 2020 also sets minimum sentences for offenders convicted of threatening with a bladed article or offensive weapon, whether or not this was a first or subsequent offence, and the bulletin now includes analysis of these offences in tables 7a, 8a and 9a.
The minimum sentence for an adult is 6 months imprisonment, and for a 16–17-year-old a 4-month Detention and Training Order. The court may reduce the sentence which would otherwise have met the minimum for an early guilty plea.
Repeat offences
The average custodial sentence received by offenders convicted for repeat possession offences under Section 315 of the Sentencing Act 2020 was 7.7 months in 2022.
This decreased from 7.8 months in 2019 to 7.4 months in both 2020 and 2021 but has increased again in 2022.
Figure 4: Knife and offensive weapons possession sentencing occasions for adult repeat offenders, by disposal type, annually from 2016 (Source: Table 7a)
In 2022 around three fifths (62%) of adult offenders sentenced under section 315 of the Sentencing Act 2020 received an immediate custodial sentence. This has dropped from 72% in 2019 but levels remain like those in 2021. Overall, 85% of adult offenders sentenced under section 315 of the Sentencing Act 2020 in 2022 received some form of custodial sentence, either immediate custody or a suspended sentence, with 24% receiving a suspended sentence. The proportion receiving a suspended sentence increased from 17% in 2019 to 23% in 2021 and remained broadly stable over the following year, reflecting the picture for all knife and offensive weapons offences dealt with. Please note, 2022 has a much higher number of cases referred to the Crown Court and awaiting sentencing than previous years. The picture for this year is more subject to change when these cases receive final decisions.
For 16- and 17-year-olds, in year 2022 31% 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 and 33% in 2021 but was broadly stable over the past year. By contrast, the proportion of 16- and 17-year-olds receiving a community sentence increased from 34% in 2019 to 54% in 2020 and 59% in 2021 but remained broadly stable at 60% in 2022. Please note, for this age group a discount for an early guilty plea will lead to a non-custodial sentence as 4 months is the minimum period of custody given to under 18s.
Threatening Offences
The Sentencing Act 2020 also sets minimum sentences for single threating offences and this bulletin now includes analysis of these offences in Tables 7a, 8a and 9a.
Table 7a shows there was a fall of 38% in the number of cases dealt with between 2021 and 2022, a fall seen for both adults and 16- and 17-year-olds. This continues a downward trend since 2017, although the rate of fall has been particularly high over the last year. 89% of adult offenders dealt with under the legislation received some kind of custodial sentence, 60% an immediate custodial sentence and 30% a suspended sentence. There has also been a decrease since 2020, from 66%, in the proportion getting an immediate custodial sentence alongside an increase, 22%, in the proportion getting a suspended sentence. A change also seen generally and for repeat offences.
Table 8a, looking at the average custodial sentence length for these offenders, shows that it has been increasing over the period from 10.6 months in 2017 to 14.1 months in 2022.The increase in average custodial sentence length has been seen for both adults and 16- and 17-year-olds, although the low numbers of 16- and 17-year-olds receiving immediate custody makes these figures volatile.
6. Further information
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.
Please also note that the bulletin now contains analysis of convictions for threatening offences under the Sentencing Act 2020. The minimum sentences set out are the same as for repeat possession offences but, for threatening offences, the offence can be a first offence or a subsequent offence. We welcome any comments or queries on these.
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: 17 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:
Helen Williams,
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 sentencing; Permanent Secretary; Minister and Permanent Secretary Private Secretaries (3); Special Advisors (2); Head of Custodial Sentencing Policy Unit; Senior Policy Advisor, Custodial Sentencing Policy Unit; Head of Youth Justice Policy; Head of News and relevant press officers (3).
Home Office:
Home Secretary; Parliamentary Under Secretary of State for Crime, Policing and Justice; Minister Private Secretaries (2); Head of Knife Crime Team; Policy Advisor, Serious Violence Unit; and relevant press officers (1).
Cabinet Office:
Senior Delivery Analyst, Number 10 Delivery Unit.