Davison, R v

Sex-offender notification requirements under Part 2 of the Sexual Offences Act 2003 arise by operation of law and do not form part of a sentence. An appellate court therefore has no sentence-appeal jurisdiction to alter a judge’s purported notification order where the underlying sentence triggers the requirements.

For paragraph 18(b)(ii)(c) of Schedule 3, the duration of a community order is determined when it is made. It is the compliance date specified under section 177(5) of the Criminal Justice Act 2003, not the date on which unpaid work is actually completed. An order requiring compliance by the first anniversary of sentence is accordingly a community sentence of at least 12 months.

The applicant pleaded guilty at Preston Crown Court to two offences of sexual assault contrary to section 3 of the Sexual Offences Act 2003. He received a community order requiring 220 hours’ unpaid work to be completed by 27 June 2009, together with costs.

The sentencing judge stated that the conviction engaged the five-year notification requirements under Part 2 of the Act. The applicant sought leave to appeal against that statement, while making no challenge to the community order or costs.

The central issue was whether an unpaid-work community order, capable of ending when the work was completed but specifying a compliance date 12 months after sentence, was a community sentence of at least 12 months for paragraph 18(b)(ii)(c) of Schedule 3.

1. The application was dismissed. Notification requirements arise by operation of law and are not part of a sentence. Applying R v Longworth [2006] UKHL 1, the court could set aside a purported notification order only if the sentence imposed did not trigger the requirements. Since the order did trigger them, there was no sentence-appeal jurisdiction.

2. A community order under the Criminal Justice Act 2003 is not itself expressed for a fixed period. Its requirements may either remain in force for a period or be completed within one. But section 177(5) requires the court, when making the order, to specify a date by which all requirements must be completed.

3. For paragraph 18(b)(ii)(c) of Schedule 3 to the Sexual Offences Act 2003, that specified compliance date determines the duration of the community order. The duration must be ascertainable on the date of the order and cannot depend on the time actually taken to perform unpaid work.

4. The contrary view expressed in Odam [2008] EWCA Crim. 1087 was wrong. Because the applicant’s work had to be completed by the first anniversary of sentence, his order was a community sentence of 12 months. The five-year notification requirements applied. The court added that, had it possessed jurisdiction, it would have granted leave but dismissed the appeal.

• Court of Appeal (Criminal Division): Application for leave to appeal against sentence dismissed. The court held that it had no jurisdiction to alter notification requirements arising by operation of law.

• Crown Court at Preston: On 27 June 2008, following guilty pleas to two sexual assaults, imposed a concurrent community order requiring 220 hours’ unpaid work by 27 June 2009 and ordered costs. The judge stated that the five-year notification requirements under Part 2 of the Sexual Offences Act 2003 applied.