Community Service Orders

Punishment in Society: The Improbable Persistence of Probation and Other Community Sanctions and Measures

“…However, in practice, even this has proven to be a rather difficult goal to achieve: research studies have tended to show that community sanctions are in fact rarely used as genuine alternatives to custody. For example, research conducted in England and Wales in the late 1970s showed that only about half of those sentenced to community service orders were actually diverted from prison, even though this was supposed to be explicit in their imposition; the other half appeared to receive community service as an 'alternative' to probation or a fine (see Pease 1985). Tonry & Lynch (1996) argue that the evidence relating to 'intermediate sanctions' programmes which were developed in the USA in the 1980s and 1990s is similar: few such programmes have diverted large numbers of individuals from prison.…”

The Introduction of Community Service Orders: Mapping its ‘Conditions of Possibility’

“…Warren Young () also accepted that the lineage of CSOs can be traced back to past penal practices such as that embodied in houses of correction (p.23). In 1980, Pease argued that slavery, transportation, penal servitude and houses of correction could all be put forward as community service's ‘less reputable forebears’, and that the sanction was only ‘in detail a novel disposal’ (Pease , p.5; Pease , pp.56–8). He believed that the practice of impressment in particular, was ‘eerily similar’ and that ‘the parallels with community service … are fairly remarkable’ (Pease , p.5).…”

Community Punishment or Community Rehabilitation: Which is the Highest in the Sentencing Tariff?

“…Whilst community service had traditionally been seen as a punishment and a fine on the offender's time (Pease 1985), the projects aimed:…”