Constance backs community sentences as ‘effective’ at cutting reoffending

Community punishments are “more effective” at cutting reoffending rates than imposing short term prison sentences, Scotland’s Justice Secretary has insisted.

Angela Constance said that community payback orders – which can see criminals ordered to carry out unpaid work as well as potentially get help for drug, alcohol or mental health problems – could help address the “underlying causes” of criminal behaviour while also “ensuring people make amends to their communities”.

She spoke out on a visit to the Mayfield and Easthouses Development Trust in Dalkeith, where offenders serving community payback orders have transformed wasteland into a garden and also refurbished the cafe, which now uses fresh produce grown on site.

The Justice Secretary hailed the “great work” done there as being “brilliant examples of how community sentences create real, lasting benefits for local communities”.

It comes as the Scottish Government is investing about £169 million in community justice services in 2026-27 – with this including an additional £10 million to support diversion from prosecution, alternatives to remand, community sentencing and other measures.

But, after a report last week called for a presumption against prison sentences of less than two years to be introduced in a bid to reduce the number of inmates in Scotland’s jails, ministers have been accused giving a “free pass” to criminals.

Tory justice spokesperson Liam Kerr blasted that proposal as being “another gross insult to victims, who are a complete afterthought when it comes to the SNP’s justice priorities”.

Ms Constance stressed: “The evidence is clear – community-based sentences are more effective than short prison sentences at reducing reoffending, contributing to fewer victims and safer communities.”

She added that last week’s Scottish Sentencing and Penal Policy Commission report had “echoed this view in some of its recommendations”, highlighting the “need to shift the balance to community justice”.

Scottish Government figures showed the reconviction rate for those who undertake community payback orders is 28.4%, compared to 52.6% for sentences to a year or less in prison.

The Justice Secretary continued: “Community payback orders allow us to tailor support to individual circumstances, addressing the underlying causes of offending while ensuring people make amends to their communities.

“The Scottish Government’s continued investment in community justice reflects our commitment to shifting the balance from custody to community, giving people the best chance to turn their lives around while keeping people safe.”