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Section 232: Additional requirements in case of offender suffering from mental disorder

Sentencing Act 2020 · 2020 c. 17View on legislation.gov.uk

Part 10: Custodial sentences — CHAPTER 1: Custody: general provisions

This section applies where—

the offender is or appears to be suffering from a mental disorder, and
the court passes a custodial sentence other than one fixed by law (“the sentence”).

Before passing the sentence, the court must obtain and consider a medical report unless, in the circumstances of the case, it considers that it is unnecessary to obtain a medical report.

Before passing the sentence, the court must consider—

any information before it which relates to the offender's mental condition (whether given in a medical report, a pre-sentence report or otherwise), and
the likely effect of such a sentence on that condition and on any treatment which may be available for it.

If the court did not obtain a medical report where required to do so by this section, the sentence is not invalidated by the fact that it did not do so.

Any court, on an appeal against the sentence, must—

obtain a medical report if none was obtained by the court below, and
consider any such report obtained by it or by that court.

In this section—

  • “medical report” means a report as to an offender's mental condition made or submitted orally or in writing by a registered medical practitioner who is approved for the purposes of section 12 of the Mental Health Act 1983— as having special experience in the diagnosis or treatment of mental disorder;

    (a)by the Secretary of State, or

    (b)by another person by virtue of section 12ZA or 12ZB of that Act,

  • “mental disorder” has the same meaning as in the Mental Health Act 1983.

Nothing in this section is to be taken to limit—

the pre-sentence report requirements (see section 30), or
any requirement for a court to take into account all information that is available to it about the circumstances of any offence, including any aggravating or mitigating factors.

About this text

This legislation text comes from legislation.gov.uk. Contains public sector information licensed under the Open Government Licence v3.0. These source and reuse terms cover the legislation text, not Remedy's commentary.

Reuse reviewed 21 August 2026 under Open Government Licence v3.0.