Should people in full-time work be able to serve short prison sentences at weekends only?
Weekend-only prison sentences do not exist in England and Wales: a custodial sentence runs continuously unless it is suspended. Since the Sentencing Act 2026 came into force on 22 March 2026, courts must normally suspend custodial sentences of 12 months or less, so the offender stays in the community under conditions. Weekend or intermittent custody was floated in a 1984 Home Office green paper and a 1998 parliamentary report, and has been used in places such as the US, Canada, Belgium and the Netherlands. In the UK, the Criminal Justice Act 2003 created intermittent custody, piloted from 2004 at two prisons and dropped in 2006 after low take-up.
3 Opinions
Excellent, I can murder the ex and then avoid her family at weekends too. Jolly good. (yes I know it said short sentences but if the judge knew the ex, he would agree there was mitigation ... ). I may be on copious amounts of painkillers following spinal surgery and not entirely with it.
We really don't need this at all. The whole point of the Sentencing Act 2026 is to encourage suspending sentences under 12 months so people keep their jobs. Building 'weekend only' prisons just creates a massive logistical headache for the exact demographic that should be doing community service.
Make them serve in the community for minor offenses. We don't have room in prisons to keep beds for weekend visitors!