Courts

Magistrates Court Screen

London Probation staff produce reports on offenders that provide advice and recommendations to help Magistrates and Judges decide on the most appropriate sentences.

Court reports are requested by the Judge or Magistrate after an offender has been convicted, in order to find out more information about them. This ensures the most appropriate sentence for the offender is given.

A Probation Officer will interview the offender and include the following details in their report;

An analysis of the offence
Background information about the offender
An assessment of the risk of re-offending and harm to the public
An assessment of the offender's suitability for the available sentences

These details will be provided in one of three court report formats - Standard Delivery Report (produced within 15 days), Fast Delivery Report (produced on the day or within 5 days) and Oral Report (produced on the day of request).

Providing accurate and detailed court reports helps to ensure offenders are given appropriate sentences. This increases the chance of stopping offenders re-offending and is therefore an extremely important part of our work.