What a pre-sentence report is
If you plead guilty or are found guilty of a criminal offence, the court may ask for a pre-sentence report before deciding your sentence. This is a written report prepared by the Probation Service. It helps the judge or magistrates work out a suitable sentence by looking at the offence, your circumstances, and whether you are likely to respond well to options such as a community order or unpaid work.
If you want a sense of what sentence you might be facing, you can use our free Sentence Guide.
In England and Wales, reports are prepared by probation officers working for His Majesty's Prison and Probation Service. The court can ask for a full written report or a shorter oral report on the same day. In busier magistrates' courts, a short oral report from the duty probation officer is now common. Fuller reports tend to be ordered for complex cases, defendants with no previous convictions, or where the court faces a significant sentencing decision.
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If a report is ordered, you will usually attend an interview with a probation officer. They will ask about the offence, your version of events, how you feel about it now, and your personal circumstances: housing, work, income, family, health, any drug or alcohol use, and previous convictions. Interviews can take place at a probation office, at court, or sometimes by video or phone.
You are entitled to legal representation throughout sentencing, and you can ask your solicitor for advice before the interview. In some cases a solicitor can attend, though most interviews happen without one present.
Turn up and engage properly. If you refuse to cooperate or fail to attend, the court will likely hear about it and may draw adverse conclusions about your willingness to engage with a community sentence. Courts sometimes make cooperation with probation a bail condition after conviction. If you cannot make the appointment, contact probation as soon as possible to rearrange. If you simply fail to show, the court may sentence you without the report.
Your situation may be slightly different. ask a question below ↓ and our editorial team will reply with our advice.
What the report covers and who sees it
The report gives the court a fuller picture: why the offence happened, the risk of reoffending, any risk of harm to others, and what sentence is realistic given your situation. It usually ends with a proposal, for example a community order with unpaid work, a rehabilitation activity requirement, drug or alcohol treatment, or a curfew with electronic tagging.
The court does not have to follow that proposal. Sentencing is for the magistrates or judge, working within the Sentencing Council guidelines. Magistrates often go along with probation's suggestion when it fits the guideline. Crown Court judges are more willing to depart, especially where custody is on the table. A report proposing a community order will not necessarily stop a judge imposing prison if the guideline points that way.
The report is shared with you, your solicitor or barrister, the prosecution, the court clerk, and the bench or judge. You should read it before the hearing. If anything is wrong, tell your lawyer straight away so it can be raised in court. Minor errors can often be corrected on the day; significant disputes may need a written submission or an adjournment. Fixing a factual error before sentencing is much easier than afterwards.
Preparing for the interview
Probation officers deal with personal information regularly: mental health, addiction, domestic circumstances. If there is something the court needs to understand, the interview is the right place to raise it. You can ask your solicitor beforehand what to mention. Anything you say may end up in the written report, so think about it in advance.
Be straight about your circumstances. Exaggerating or minimising tends to come across badly, and probation officers are experienced at spotting it. If the report suggests you were not honest, that can affect how the court views your remorse and suitability for community sentences.
If you have a mental health condition, learning disability, or neurodivergent condition such as autism or ADHD, say so. The report can flag this and recommend adjustments to any requirements attached to a community order.
- Attend the interview on time with any paperwork probation ask for.
- Read the report carefully before sentencing and flag errors to your lawyer.
- Check whether cooperation with probation is a bail condition.
- If you cannot attend, contact probation as soon as you know.
A report can still help even when custody seems unavoidable. It can set out mitigating factors: genuine remorse, caring responsibilities, steps taken to address the behaviour, or context that might affect sentence length or whether it can be suspended. The report also feeds into how probation manages your sentence once you are released on licence.
A pre-sentence report will not decide your sentence alone, but it often has real influence, particularly where the court has a genuine choice between custody and a community order. Treating the process seriously is usually worth the effort.
The probation officer will assess your circumstances, previous convictions, and readiness to change. Being honest with them and showing you're already taking steps to address any addiction issues can make a real difference to their recommendations.
If you have a solicitor speak to them urgently about your specific situation as they can advise on realistic outcomes and help you prepare properly for the probation interview. If you don't have one yet, please consider contacting a criminal defence solicitor immediately as this issue is too important to handle alone without support.
The solictor has will submit an appeal soon.
Due to incorrect law of used as the previous trial should have not happened. Can you shed some light into this.
Solictor is asking to go to the interview hence she is fully aware my son is mentally not stable.
Not sure why.
What is the alternative to this?
My partner is up for sentencing for a section 18 - probation have been to interview for a pre sentence report and asked him alot about me and my children (who are not his), in particular they asked if i was involved with social services and I was wondering why they would ask this?
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I can't see what the problem is, unless the subject is planning to be unavailable. If what you are saying is that the Probation Service would like to speak to the subject in the middle of his holiday, then there are methods of doing that as Covid has taught us. So, on the whole, unless I misunderstand your question, I think the answer is, no.
And, from what you have told us, both sides agree on nothing. And, so there is no method for this forum to help you.
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