Commentary on Sections Part 12 - Sentencing Chapter 3 : Prison sentences of less than 12 months Section 181: Prison sentences of less than 12 months
503.This section ensures that in general all prison sentences of less than 12 months will consist of a short period of custody followed by a longer period on licence, during which the offender has to comply with requirements fixed by the courts as part of his sentence. Subsection (2) sets out the minimum and maximum lengths of the sentence. Subsection (3) requires the court to specify both the ‘custodial period’ and the ‘licence period’. During the licence period the offender is to be subject to conditions specified in the “custody plus order”. Subsection (5) makes provision for the length of the custodial period, which must be between 2 and 13 weeks. Subsection (6) requires the licence period to be at least 26 weeks. Subsection (7) makes provision for consecutive sentences and limits the total term of imprisonment for two or more offences to 15 months, with a maximum of 6 months in custody. Subsection (9) provides that, in the case of a suspended sentence, the court need not when passing sentence specify the licence conditions that would apply should the sentence take effect.