Community Orders and Requirements

Community Orders and Requirements

Following the Criminal Justice Act 2003, a single generic Community Order is now available with a range of twelve requirements. A court must include at least one of these requirements when passing a sentence for a Community Order.

 Each requirement is designed to fulfil one or more of the 'purposes of sentences,’ which are:

  • Punishment
  • Reduction of crime (including deterrence)
  • Reform and rehabilitation
  • Protection of the public
  • Making reparation.

The twelve requirements are:

  • Supervision: This requirement requires the offender to attend appointments with the National Probation Service or another nominated responsible officer. The Probation Service will supervise the offender and offer motivational support, with the main purpose of rehabilitation.
  • Unpaid Work: The purpose of this requirement would be punishment, reparation and rehabilitation. The Order must be for between 40 and 300 hours and normally be completed within twelve months.
  • Programme: The Programme Requirement aims to rehabilitate offenders. A specific programme should be named at the point of sentence. Certain programmes are accredited. Cheshire Probation Area runs a series of programmes for Sex Offending, Substance Related Offending, Domestic Violence, Drink Impaired Driving, Persistent Offending  (Thinking Skills).
  • Activity: This requirement may be linked to Unpaid Work or Supervision. The offender is required to show up at a particular place and take part in specified activities. A range of activities can be considered depending on what is available locally (in Cheshire, there is an Alcohol Activity Requirement and Employment, Training and Education provision).  These could consist of packages of work on Basic Skills or include activities whose purpose is that of reparation. The aggregate number of days specified for the activity can be anything up to 60.
  • Prohibited Activity: The offender must refrain from participating in activities on a specified day or days or during a period. Examples of Prohibited Activities are attending football matches or entering licensed premises are examples, the main purpose being punishment and protection.
  • Curfew: This requirement will usually be accompanied with electronic monitoring.  The offender must remain at a specified place for a period of between two and twelve hours per day. The requirement may last for up to six months, the main purpose being punishment and protection.
  • Exclusion: This requirement will usually be accompanied by electronic monitoring, unless the Court considers it unnecessary.  The offender may not enter a specified place for a period up to two years. The court may specify different places on different days and the place can include an entire area such as the City of Chester, the main purpose of this Requirement is punishment and protection.
  • Residence: The offender will be ordered to live at a specified address or addresses. The address may be a private address or, with the Probation Service's recommendation, a hostel or other such institution, the main purpose being punishment and protection.
  • Mental Health Treatment: This requirement may be issued where there is evidence from a medical practitioner that the offender requires treatment but is not sufficiently ill to warrant the making of a hospital order. It may involve visits to a specified doctor or psychologist, out-patient treatment at a named institution, or treatment as an admitted patient to a hospital or care home. The offender must be willing to comply and the treatment must be available.
  • Drug Rehabilitation: The court orders the offender to undergo drug treatment and testing for not less than 6 months. Reviews to check the offender's progress are carried out at not less than one month intervals. The offender must consent to this order being made.
  • Alcohol Treatment: This requires the offender to undergo treatment by a qualified person to eliminate or reduce alcohol dependency. As with Drug Rehabilitation, the offender must be willing and the treatment must be available.
     
  • Attendance Centre: This requirement is available only for offenders between the ages of 18 and 24 who must go to an Attendance Centre for a maximum of 3 hours per day and not less than 12 nor more than 36 hours in total, the main purpose being punishment.