The Sentencing Act 2026 – What does it actually do?

On 22 March 2026, the Sentencing Act 2026 came into force. With it came a number of significant changes to sentencing powers as we know them, particularly in relation to Suspended Sentences of Imprisonment. In short, the Sentencing Act 2026 allows for sentences of 3 years or less to be suspended and creates a statutory presumption that any sentence of 12 months or less are suspended.

Importantly, the Sentencing Act 2026 is not retrospective. The new legislation applies to any conviction after 22 March 2026 – the offence date is irrelevant.

Suspended Sentences

First, considering suspended sentence orders. This could well be considered the biggest change brought by the new legislation. Practitioners will be used to the fact any sentence of 24 months or less could be suspended. The new rules, in a bid to lessen the prison population and have an increased focus on rehabilitation, allow for a sentence of 3 years or less to be suspended.

If the Custodial Element is more than 2 years, or the aggregate total of two consecutive sentences is more than 2 years, legislation allows the operational period to be up to 3 years. If this does not apply, and the total sentence is less than 2 years, the maximum operational period remains the same, 2 years.

This has a real impact for those charged with serious offences. For example, let us think for a moment about ‘credit for a guilty plea’. A person who enters a guilty plea at the first opportunity is entitled to a 1/3rd reduction from any sentence; this drops to 25% at the next opportunity. A maximum of 10% credit, or reduction, is available on the morning of trial.

Placing this into a ‘real-life’ context, a category A1 offence (the highest category) of Inciting sexual activity with a child, for example, has a starting point of 5 years – with full credit reducing that to 40 months, and 4 months for personal mitigation would make a suspendable sentence. Similarly, sentences for Possession with Intent to Supply Class A Drugs, taking a signifncant role category 3 offence as an example, has a starting point of 4 years 6 months custody – with full credit that would be reduced to 3 years – again, now a sentence capable of being suspended!

Presumption of Suspended Sentence Order

As well as altering what length of sentence can be suspend, the Sentencing Act 2026 also creates a statutory presumption of suspending any sentence that is 12 months or less. For an offender aged 18 or over on the day of their conviction, if the court is imposing a sentence of imprisonment that is 12 months or less, the court must suspend that sentence unless there are “exceptional circumstances which relate to the offence OR the offender AND justify not making the order” (s.264(2)(a) and s.277A(2)(a) Sentencing Act 2026).

The presumption of suspending a sentence does not apply if:

1. The defendant is a serving prisoner
   
2. The defendant is remanded in another matter
   
3. The defendant is detained under the Mental Health Act 1983
   
4. The defendant is being re-sentenced in a case where a community order, DTO, referral order, SSO, or YRO was originally imposed
   
5. The defendant is currently subject to a court order
   
6. The commission of the offence is closely related to a breach of a court order (such as a breach of a restraining order, or an offence of witness intimidation)
   
7. A suspended sentence would put particular individuals at significant risk of physical or psychological harm.
   

Sentence Deferment

The powers of the court to defer sentence under s.5 of the Sentencing Code has also seen some change. Sentences can now be deferred for 12 months, rather than 6, if the conviction date is after 22 March 2026. It is anticipated this will be particularly relevant for those aged between 18 and 25 at the time of conviction.

Conclusion

To conclude, the Sentencing Act 2026 makes signifncant changes to suspended sentence orders as we know them. By extending the power to a sentence of 3 years’ custody, defendant’s facing sentence for serious offences such as Class A drug dealing, and even inciting sexual activity with a child, have a very real chance of a suspended sentence order. The Sentencing Act 2026 also creates a statutory presumption of suspending sentences that are 12 months or less.