Women make up a small proportion of offenders dealt with in the UK criminal justice system (CJS) as most criminal offences are committed by men. The issues faced by women in the CJS are significantly different to those faced by men and women have more distinct vulnerabilities.

Aim To deliver training sessions to magistrates to increase their awareness of issues facing women in the CJS and provide alternatives to custodial sentences.

Method A magistrate-led vulnerable-person focus group delivered seven ‘focus on women’ awareness sessions to 100 staff at four courts in Northamptonshire.

Findings The participants reported improved confidence when sentencing women offenders. They were also more likely to seek information about the women’s health and social care circumstances before sentencing and to consider alternatives to custodial sentences.

Conclusion After the training, magistrates were more aware of the importance of biopsychosocial influences on the lives of female offenders. The training could be easily replicated in other areas to improve sentencing for women in England.