Community sentence
Definition
A non-custodial sentence served in the community, typically combining unpaid work requirements, supervision by a probation officer, or rehabilitative programme attendance. The umbrella term covers community service orders, probation orders, and conditional discharges.
Related terms
- Diversion programme
- A scheme that redirects an alleged offender away from formal prosecution, typically for minor or first-time offending, into an alternative process such...
- Drug court
- A specialist court that diverts substance-dependent offenders from prosecution into supervised treatment, with the judge playing an active monitoring role. Participants who...
- Electronic monitoring
- The use of radio-frequency ankle tags or GPS tracking devices to enforce curfews or geographic exclusion zones as a condition of bail,...
- Family Group Conference (FGC)
- A restorative justice model developed in New Zealand under the Children, Young Persons, and Their Families Act 1989, in which a young...
- Restorative justice
- A process in which the victim, the offender, and relevant community members meet with a trained facilitator to discuss the harm caused,...
Explained in
- Alternatives to Custody and Restorative JusticeA non-custodial sentence served in the community, typically combining unpaid work requirements, supervision by a probation officer, or rehabilitative programme...