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Book review: Exploring Sentencing Practice in England and Wales

Document Cited in Related
Vincent
Published date01 March 2017
DOI10.1177/0264550517695164a
AuthorMike Guilfoyle
Date01 March 2017
Subject MatterBook reviews
PRB695164 67..70
Book reviews
69
Exploring Sentencing Practice in England and Wales
Julian V. Roberts (ed.)
Palgrave Macmillan; 2015; pp. 288; £68; hbk
ISBN: 978-1-137-39039-4
Reviewed by: Mike Guilfoyle, Associate Member Napo
This edited volume brings together many of the leading scholars in criminal justice
and law and offers an authoritative and insightful exploration of recent sentencing
research in England and Wales. Roberts is widely acclaimed as one of the leading
experts on sentencing practice and his criminological opus in this field is dauntingly
large. A book such as this is a particularly timely addition to the scholarly literature
on sentencing given the pivotal role played by the Sentencing Council for England
and Wales (created in 2009) with its statutory duty to publish its reviews of sen-
tencing patterns across local justice areas from both crown and magistrates courts,
as well as increasing public understanding of sentencing (particularly apt given
populist media narratives). The analytical skill in evidence from each of the aca-
demic contributions is greatly aided by more recent empirical studies and reflects
the latest resurgence of interest in ensuring that sentencing practice, central to the
fair, accountable and just administration of justice, remains open to sound and
informed independent exploration.
The opening chapter co-authored by Roberts and Hough provides a clear sighted
and informative overview of the background to the growth of empirical research on
sentencing, in particular the development of the Crown Court Sentencing Survey
(CCSS) which became operational in 2011, which obliges judges to expand on the
reasons for imposing different types of sentences set alongside how such decisions
sit within existing sentencing guidelines. The retention of such important justice data
provides a valuable resource for academic and jurisdictional purposes. This theme
is then taken forward by Dhami and Belton’s chapter; they admirably canvass many
of the historic methodological...

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