Sentencing and Penal Policy Commission: Call for Evidence

Closes 25 May 2025

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Bail and Remand

2. In your view, what are the priority issues affecting bail and remand? In Scotland, what needs to change and why?

When answering this question, you may find it useful to reflect on one or more of the following:

Decision-making on bail and remand

  • Key issues and influences affecting uses of bail and remand
  • Trends in prosecutorial and judicial decision-making on bail and remand
  • Amount, type and quality of information available in the Sheriff Courts to help inform judicial decision-making on bail and remand
  • Views on implementation of penal policy in this area (e.g., key sections in the Bail and Release from Custody (Scotland) Act 2023, or throughcare provision for people on remand)

Victim support

  • Victim support and advocacy perspectives on uses of bail and remand, including promoting victim safety, perceptions of procedural fairness, and trauma-informed communication

Justice

  • Whether different needs and vulnerabilities are considered at the bail and pre-trial stage (e.g., mental health, neurodivergence and learning disability, substance use and addiction, homelessness, prior victimisation, or conditions and care needs associated with older age)
  • Whether or not the parental status of an accused person and rights of the child (UNCRC) are considered in bail and remand decision-making
  • Human rights considerations of access to justice for all affected

People on bail

  • Evidence and ideas for better supporting and supervising people on bail (including, for example, good practice in bail supervision, mentoring, custody navigator or link worker approaches with custody suites)
  • Experiences of accused people remanded in custody and the impact of prison conditions, staffing, overcrowding, and legal status of remand
  • How non-compliance and/or breach of bail are handled and whether this contributes to pressures on courts and the prison population
  • How uses of remand may affect subsequent sentencing

Ways of working

  • How to reduce backlogs and delays at the bail and remand stage
  • How technology could be used wisely and well, where appropriate
  • Workforce, workload, and multi-agency working considerations

Existing recommendations

  • Previous recommendations in this area made by other bodies or groups which, in your view, should be prioritised for implementation