Scots councils have recorded nearly 40,000 unauthorised absences from an alternative punishment to prison over the last five years.

They made up over a third of the 100,000 incidents of absences from offenders carrying out Community Payback Orders, according to an analysis of local authority responses.

But there are concerns that tally across Scotland is almost certainly considerably higher – as only 15 of the 32 councils in Scotland provided the requested data.

Of the remaining councils, one failed to respond and the rest said they did not collect this data – despite guidance from the SNP Government stating that all absences should be recorded on an offender’s case file.

The Scottish Conservatives who obtained the figures described the scale of absenteeism by offenders due to carry out Community Payback Orders (CPOs) was “scandalous”.

An analysis of responses from councils shows there were 104,862 incidents of absence recorded for the financial years 2018-19 through to 2022-23.

Of those over a third – 37,582 – were labelled in council records as “unacceptable” - which would be breaches.

The Scottish government has made community sentences and alternatives to prison a priority - citing research which says they are far more likely to reduce reoffending and help rehabilitate offenders than time behind bars.

At the end of last year the backlog of unpaid work through community sentences that offenders in Scotland need to carry out had risen to more than 700,000 hours.

Sheriffs can sentence offenders to unpaid work for a wide range of offences as an alternative to prison.

But Covid restrictions meant many offenders were unable to complete their CPO hours.

More than 250,000 hours of unpaid work were written off.

Experts have said that councils were struggling with staff shortages which are restricting the ability to supervise offenders.

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It also means that attempts to clear outstanding court cases mean even more people are being sentenced.

Scottish Conservatives' shadow justice secretary Jamie Greene, said: “These figures are scandalous and unacceptable – and yet they do not even tell half the story when it comes to absences among those meant to be carrying out community sentences.

The Herald:

“It is yet another example of the SNP’s soft-touch justice approach in action. Not only have SNP ministers been content to write off hundreds of thousands of hours of payback orders, now an eye-watering level of absenteeism among criminals has been exposed.

“It makes a mockery of the justice system when criminals are effectively being given the green light to be absent from community sentences, which, in many cases, are considered lenient in the first place.

“These absences are an insult to victims. They expect this work to be carried out, yet in so many cases offenders are not bothering to turn up at all."

In January 2021, the Scottish government had to introduce controversial emergency measures to make cuts to the number of hours of unpaid work done by offenders to tackle the growing backlog.

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The justice secretary reduced the unpaid work element of CPOs by 35% for all cases except those involving domestic abuse, sexual abuse and stalking.

At the time, it had been predicted there would be more than one million hours of unpaid work outstanding by the summer of that year if nothing was done.

Despite about 250,000 hours of unpaid work being written off, the backlog has risen again to almost the same level.

CPOs can include a range of measures including supervision, drug treatment and unpaid work.

Social workers have said that they have been working with ministers to cut the backlog that in some areas they are struggling to recruit and retain staff.

Mr Greene added: “Community sentencing is failing victims at every turn on the SNP’s watch. The new SNP justice secretary must finally put victims first, as well as ensuring our cash-strapped councils are given every resource they need to tackle absenteeism.

“Questions must also be asked as to why half of Scotland’s local authorities are not recording this data when government guidance clearly states they should be. Their failure to do so means that the true number of absences will be significantly higher.”

On average people are given around 130 hours of unpaid work to do. In March 2021 there were 14,300 CPOs in force in Scotland.

Community sentences are meant to be finished within the time period given by the sheriff - which is often one year or six months.

If they are not completed within the time period, it would be considered a breach of their payback order and they will be sent back to the sheriff.

A Scottish Government spokesperson said: “The reconviction rate for individuals given Community Payback Orders is consistently lower than for those given short sentences. 79% of orders which finished during 2021 – 2022 did not involve any breach applications during the lifetime of the order.

“Crime, including violence, has fallen under this government and our focus remains on prevention, effective community interventions and rehabilitation, both in communities and a custody setting. We are also strengthening how justice and wider public services support victims, with £48 million being provided to victims’ organisations as part of our commitment to putting victims at the heart of the justice system.

“In addition we will invest a total of £134 million in community justice services, which includes the continuation of an additional investment of £15 million from 2022-23 to support recovery efforts, bolster capacity, and strengthen alternatives to remand.”

A Scottish Government spokesman  said: “The reconviction rate for individuals given Community Payback Orders is consistently lower than for those given short sentences. 79% of orders which finished during 2021 – 2022 did not involve any breach applications during the lifetime of the order.

“Crime, including violence, has fallen under this government and our focus remains on prevention, effective community interventions and rehabilitation, both in communities and a custody setting. We are also strengthening how justice and wider public services support victims, with £48 million being provided to victims’ organisations as part of our commitment to putting victims at the heart of the justice system.

“In addition we will invest a total of £134 million in community justice services, which includes the continuation of an additional investment of £15 million from 2022-23 to support recovery efforts, bolster capacity, and strengthen alternatives to remand.”