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Produced by the Sentencing Academy

Snapshot 20

Rape

Bringing together relevant statistics and trends relating to sentencing

by Annalena Wolcke

Last updated: Jul 2025

Overview

  • Rape
    • Sentencing Council guideline range: 4-year to 19-year prison sentence
    • Maximum sentence: life imprisonment
  • Rape of a child under 13
    • Sentencing Council guideline range: 6-year to 19-year prison sentence
    • Maximum sentence: life imprisonment
  • This snapshot summarises key trends over the past 5 years

Immediate Prison Sentence Lengths

Figure 1: Prison Sentence Lengths, Rape, 2020–20241

  • The most frequent sentence range is between 10 to 15 years, accounting for 26% of all immediate custodial sentences.
  • Approximately 21% of prison sentences are over 15 years.

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 a.wolcke@sentencingacademy.org.uk

  1. Data source: Criminal Justice Statistics Quarterly December 2024, published 15th of May 2025. https://www.gov.uk/government/statistics/criminal-justice-system-statistics-quarterly-december-2024 ↩︎