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Produced by the Sentencing Academy

Snapshot 18

Possession of a Firearm

Bringing together relevant statistics and trends relating to sentencing

by Annalena Wolcke

Last updated: Sep 2026

Overview

  • Possession:
    • Sentencing Council guideline range: discharge to a 10-year prison sentence1
    • Maximum sentence: 10-years’ imprisonment
  • Possession with intent to endanger life:
    • Sentencing Council guideline range: 4-year to a 22-year prison sentence
    • Maximum sentence: life imprisonment
  • Convictions decreased slightly over the last 10 years
  • Convictions in 2025: 1,238
  • This snapshot summarises key trends over the past 5 years

Sentences Imposed

Figure 1: Sentences for Firearm Possession, 2021-2025

  • 43% of convictions resulted in a term of immediate imprisonment.2
  • A further 17% resulted in a fine.3

Figure 2: Sentences Imposed for Firearm Possession, 2021-2025

  • Immediate custody rates for the possession of a firearm increased by around 15% over the last 5 years.

Immediate Prison Sentence Lengths

Figure 3: Prison Sentence Lengths, Firearm Possession, 2025

  • The most frequent sentence range is between 1 and 5 years, accounting for over half of all immediate custodial sentences.
  • Approximately 21% of prison sentences are over 5 years.

Sentencing Outcomes by Sex

Figure 4: Sentencing Outcomes by Sex, Firearm Possession, 2025

  • Female (n=81); Male (n=1,138)
  • In 2025, the custody rate for firearm possession was higher for men (48%) than for women (12%).

These rates do not account for various factors that influence sentencing decisions, such as the offender’s criminal history and the seriousness of the specific offence. Additional research would be needed to determine whether gender affected the sentence imposed.

This Snapshot is one of a series on sentencing trends in England & Wales. Others can be found here. For further information, contact Annalena Wolcke at [email protected]

  1. Offences include: possession of firearms offences (indictable only); possession of firearms offences (triable either way) ↩︎
  2. Data source for these and all other figures below: Data calculated from Ministry of Justice (2026), Criminal Justice Statistics Quarterly: December 2025, published 30th of April. Outcomes by offence data tool, Table 2. https://www.gov.uk/government/statistics/criminal-justice-statistics-quarterly-december-2025. ↩︎
  3. ‘Other sanctions’ include: absolute discharge, and the category ‘otherwise dealt with’ ↩︎