Recommendation 40

The Probation Service’s court teams are highly regarded by sentencers, but there are concerns about how their role is perceived by offenders. Due in part to the regularity with which sentencers accept the recommendations in the PSR, court teams themselves are sometimes seen by offenders as sentencing or even as prosecuting, which can undermine the trust of offenders in the Probation Service and lead to proceedings being perceived as unfair. Sentencers might consider being more explicit in the way they take ownership of their sentencing decisions when it aligns with a recommendation made by the Probation Service. Demonstrating that sentences are determined by the judiciary alone could reduce misconceptions.