Commentary on Sections Part 12 - Sentencing Chapter 4 : Further provisions about orders under Chapters 2 and 3 Section 214: Attendance centre requirement
540.Attendance centre orders are currently free-standing orders for certain young offenders, under Chapter 4 of Part 4 of the Powers of Criminal Courts (Sentencing) Act. At an attendance centre, practical activities, including sport, can be run to occupy offenders for a certain number of hours to keep them out of trouble. This is often on Saturdays as attendance centres were originally set up for football-related offenders.Subsection (1)enables the court to require an offender to attend an attendance centre for a specified number of hours. Subsection (2) requires the total number of hours an order may specify to be between 12 and 36. Under subsection (3) the court must be satisfied that the offender can get to the centre and must consider the circumstances of the offender when making the appointments. Subsection (4) provides that the first appointment is to be set by the responsible officer, and under subsection (5) any subsequent appointments are to be made by the person in charge of the centre. Subsection (6) provides that the offender cannot be required to attend more than once a day or for more than three hours on any one day.