Community and neighbourhood issues

A Structured Deferred Sentence (SDS) is an intervention after a person has been found guilty of an offence, but before they are given final sentencing.

This is a sentencing option used by the courts for people assessed as low or medium risk of further offending and are not subject to another order.

Its focus is on providing structured support to address why the person’s needs may lead to offending behaviour.

A SDS involves delaying the final sentence to allow for a period of intervention and support with social work. 

This period is usually for between 3 to 6 months and aims to:

• address the causes of the person’s offending behaviour
• prevent further involvement in the justice system
• reduce reoffending
• provide more effective rehabilitation.

At the end of this period, our social work service provides the court with a report on the person’s progress.

If the person has shown positive engagement and progress during the intervention, the court may reduce the severity of the sentence or disposal.

If the person has not shown progress during this time, the court will consider this in its final sentence. This could include imprisonment.

More information

If you want to find out more or discuss what services are available to you, contact our justice social work service by:

What a Fiscal Work Order is   

A Fiscal Work Order (FWO) is an alternative to prosecution, where a person over 16 can agree to complete a period of unpaid work instead of facing court proceedings.

The Procurator Fiscal can offer the person an order to complete between 10 and 50 hours of unpaid work in the community within 6 months.

If the person successfully completes the FWO, they will not be prosecuted or get a criminal conviction for that offense.

The FWO aims to:

• extend the measures available to prosecutors when dealing with people who do not need a court hearing
• provide an opportunity for people accused of relatively minor offences to be dealt out with the court system
• enable those accused of offences to carry out community work to ‘pay back’ for their behaviour and avoid re-offending
• benefit victims and communities through faster and more appropriate resolution of cases
• reduce the demands on the court system and backlog of cases, by removing those that do not need to be taken to court from the process.  

Find out more about unpaid work.

More information

If you want to find out more or discuss what services are available to you, contact our justice social work service by:

What happens if diversion from prosecution is granted

If you’re considered suitable for diversion, our justice social work service can work with you for up to 3 months to focus on any personal circumstances or any other issues which may be leading you to offend.

During this time, the Procurator Fiscal will defer a decision on prosecution while they wait for the outcome of this intervention.

The service completes an assessment report if you have been referred for diversion.

Once complete, our service shares a report with the Procurator Fiscal commenting on the work you have done and the commitment you have showed.

If the actions you have taken are likely to prevent or reduce future offending, the Procurator Fiscal will usually divert you from prosecution for the alleged offence.

If the service report believes you have not made satisfactory progress, the Procurator Fiscal may decide to progress with prosecution.

More information

If you want to find out more or discuss what services are available to you, contact our justice social work service by:

In some cases, the Procurator Fiscal may decide to divert a case for social work intervention.

This is when a person is referred to our justice social work service to address the causes of their offending behaviour instead of a criminal prosecution being pursued.

Diversion may be considered in cases involving young people or first offenders for minor offences, or where it is decided by the Procurator Fiscal that it is not in the public interest for a prosecution.

Its aim is to prevent people entering the justice system unnecessarily and to prevent further offending.

What bail and bail supervision is

After an arrest and appearance at court, the court may decide that an accused person is suitable to be released on bail or bail supervision.

Bail and bail supervision serve different purposes in the legal process.

Bail is a legal condition that allows an accused person to remain in the community while awaiting trial, provided they comply with certain conditions.

Bail supervision is a social work or third sector service that supports individuals to comply with the conditions of their bail. This often involves regular meetings with a bail supervisor to monitor compliance and provide necessary support.

If bail is granted, the person is released on certain conditions until a further appearance at court.

Our justice social work service may be asked to provide an assessment for bail suitability and bail supervision. This would involve interviewing the accused person to discuss their current circumstances, including family, employment, and accommodation details.

The aim of the service is to reduce the number of accused people held in custody on remand, provided any potential risks can be managed safely outside of prison.

The service provides updates to the court on the person’s compliance with the conditions of their supervised bail.

What happens if bail supervision is granted

If you’re accused of a crime and given bail supervision, you must agree to follow support and monitoring, and any other conditions imposed by the court.

You will make a minimum of 3 contacts each week with your bail supervision officer – or another worker outlined in your conditions – for the first month. This will reduce to 1 contact per week as a minimum.
 

What happens if bail or bail supervision conditions are broken

If you do not follow the bail conditions set by the court, the court will be advised and you could be remanded to prison.

More information

If you want to find out more or discuss what services are available to you, contact our justice social work service by:

What it is

Justice social work provides a number of services to courts and people involved in the criminal justice system before they may be sentenced.

This includes assessments, support, and interventions from across our justice social work teams. 

We also have a team based in Paisley Sheriff Court, which can assist those attending court if they need support.

Key responsibilities of justice social work

Justice social work focuses on building trust and helping people stay out of trouble in the future, while making sure they take responsibility for what they did. 

Some its key responsibilities include: 

• early intervention and prevention
• assessment and case management
• supervision of court orders
• rehabilitation and support
• reparation and payback to community.

What justice social work services we provide

Our services include:

• providing assessments and reports on offenders to courts to assist decisions on sentencing
• providing information and supervision to people on bail as an alternative to being held in custodial remand
• a social work service to people who are are offered a diversion (an alternative) to prosecution
• supervision of people who are given a community payback order by the courts
• provision of unpaid community work placements for people as ordered by the courts
• supervision of people who have been given Drug Treatment and Testing Orders (DTTO)
• supervision and support for people after their release from prison to help them adapt and prevent reoffending (called throughcare services)
• services for women
• help for young people in the justice system
• supporting victims of crime and their families
• public protection - working with partners in Multi Agency Public Protection Arrangements (MAPPA) on risk assessment, planning, management, and interventions on both an individual and group basis. 

Who the services are for

Justice social work services are for mostly for people in the criminal justice system, including those who have offended, are at risk of re-offending, and their victims.

People are normally referred to our justice social work service as a result of court orders, report requests, or for supervision following release from prison.

How to contact the service

You can contact the service to make a suggestion or complaint by:

More information

Justice Social Work services are delivered within a framework of statutory requirements, national and local policies, standards, and guidance.

You can find out more with: 

• The Vision for Justice In Scotland (Scottish Government website)
• Justice Social Work Guidance (Scottish Government website)
• Whole system approach to young offending (Scottish Government website)
• Justice social work statistics (Scottish Government website).

Justice social work provides services to people in the criminal justice system.  

It plays a vital role in Scotland’s criminal justice system.  

It supports and works with people who have offended from the point of arrest, through prosecution and sentencing, and during their reintegration into the community.

Justice social work services aim to:

• address the causes of a person’s offending behaviour
• hold people who have offended accountable for their actions and support them to reduce the risk of re-offending
• work with and support people who have been involved in offending behaviour to rehabilitate and re-settle into the community
• consider victims of crime in the work we do
• work with partners to enhance public protection and community safety.

We do this by :

• making sure people who have offended are appropriately assessed, supported and managed within the community where it is safe to do so  
• providing a justice service that focuses on reducing future offending and supporting people to constructively pay back for their actions, and build better lives for themselves and the communities they live in
• working in partnership with various public and third sector organisations.

The Community Justice (Scotland) Act 2016 led to justice social work services becoming part of a wider Community Justice Partnership. Find out more about community justice.

Archived Community Asset Transfer (CAT) annual reports

Every year, we must provide the Scottish Government with a report that includes:

• the number of Community Asset Transfer requests we received that year
• the number of requests we approved and refused
• any reviews, appeals, and their outcomes
• details of any asset transfers that concluded that year.

East Beardmore Cottages, Inchinnan - 2025 (approved)

49 Beardmore Cottages, Inchinnan - 2025 (approved)

Falcon Day Centre, Paisley - 2025 (approved)

Houston Road Park Pavilion, Bridge of Weir - 2024 (withdrawn)

Renfrew Cricket Ground, Renfrew - 2024 (refused)

Linwood Community Garden, Linwood - 2023 (withdrawn)

Erskine Community Allotments, Erskine - 2023 (approved)

Manse Crescent, Houston - 2023 (withdrawn)

Lochhead Avenue, Lochwinnoch - 2023 (approved)

Whitehaugh Barracks, Paisley - 2023 (approved)

Bridge Street and Old Candren Road, Linwood - 2023 (approved)

Ralston Community Sports Centre, Paisley - 2023 (refused)

Woodlands Bowling Club, Linwood - 2022 (approved)

India Tyres Playing Fields, Inchinnan - 2022 (approved)

Howwood Pavilion, Howwood - 2021 (approved)

Requests at other stages

This list is an archive of Community Asset Transfer requests that have been concluded. Archived requests include requests that were:

• approved – the asset has now been transferred from the council to the new organisation under a lease, sale, or management agreement
• refused – the request was not approved, all options of appeal have been exhausted, and the responsibility for the asset is staying with the council
• withdrawn – the request was withdrawn by the applicant before or after determination, and responsibility for the asset is staying with the council.

Archived requests are listed by asset name. Each section below includes all of the documents associated with the transfer request, decision, and appeal, if relevant.

Ongoing Community Asset Transfer requests

St Ninian's Church Hall, Paisley - 2025 (awaiting a final decision)

Beechwood Community Centre, Paisley - 2025 (approved)

Kilpatrick Drive, Erskine - 2024 (approved)

Requests at other stages

This list contains all ongoing Community Asset Transfer requests. These requests have been ‘determined’ by the council, which means they were either:

• approved by the council and are awaiting legal conclusion
• not approved and are now being appealed.

Ongoing requests are listed by asset name. The sections below include all of the documents associated with an ongoing transfer request, including:

• the original request
• any representations and responses
• the decision notice
• any documents related to an appeal (review).