This report, commissioned by the Mission and Public Affairs Council of the Church of England, is an important contribution to the national debate on the future of sentencing and the role of the courts. It considers the efficacy and integrity of the current criminal justice system and the principles of restorative justice, responsible sentencing, rehabilitation and atonement from a Christian perspective.

Ecumenical and up-to-date with current legislation, the report is edited by Peter Sedgwick, until recently, the Policy Adviser for the Home Affairs department in the Church of England. Peter Sedgwick is one of the Churches' leading experts on the criminal justice system.

'Rethinking Sentencing is a thoughtful, insightful and refreshing contribution to penal thinking. The authors demonstrate convincingly that Christian principles require a radically different approach to sentencing, one based on restoring the damage caused by crime and respecting the hunanity of all those affected by it.'
Paul Cavadino, Chief Executive, Nacro

'This thoughtful collection of essays not only brings a Christian perspective to bear on the highly charged subject of sentencing, but raises a wide range of profound questions about how society deals with offenders. It will be of great interest to all those who work in, study, or worry about criminal justice.'
Rob Allen, Director, Rethinking Crime and Punishment 

Rethinking Sentencing will contribute to the debate on criminal justice at General Synod in July 2004 and offers all readers a guide to this highly topical and senstive subject.

Contributing authors: Stuart Dew, David Faulkner, Lord Justice Laws, Tim Newell, Stephen Pryor, Bishop Peter Selby.

Contents:
The reform of sentencing and the future of the criminal courts - David Faulkner
Restorative justice in England - Tim Newell
Responsible sentencing - Stephen Pryor
The churches and criminal justice - Stuart Dew
The future of sentencing: a perspective form the judiciary - Lord Justice Laws
Restorative justice in a money culture: overcoming the obstacles of a restorative rationality - Peter Selby, Bishop of Worcester

The report is available to download as a PDF from the Church of England web site by visiting http://cofe.anglican.org/info/papers/.