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Animal welfare

Animal Welfare Act 2006, s.33 · Magistrates’ or Crown Court

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Sentencing framework

Sentencing guidelines for offences against animal welfare allow courts to impose various penalties including disqualification from owning animals, compensation orders, and custodial sentences. Courts must consider both statutory and non-statutory aggravating and mitigating factors as part of the process.

Maximum sentence

Life imprisonment

Court

Magistrates’ or Crown Court

Offence range

Discharge - 5 years custody

Sentencing range explorer

Select the culpability level and harm category to see the guideline's starting point and category range. This is an educational illustration of the published guideline — not a sentence calculation, and not legal advice. Courts apply the full step-by-step process, aggravating and mitigating factors, and the totality principle.

Culpability

Harm

Select a culpability level and a harm category above.

The sentencing process, step by step

  1. Step 1 — Determining the offence category
  2. Step 2 — Identifying culpability
  3. Step 3 — Assessing harm
  4. Step 4 — Applying starting points
  5. Step 5 — Adjusting for aggravating/mitigating factors
  6. Step 6 — Finalizing the sentence

Guideline notes

  • The court must consider the animal's welfare and the offender's remorse during sentencing. Sentences may be combined with public disqualification orders. A compensation order may also be applicable.

Always read the full guideline

This is a one-page summary. For any live case, sentencing exercise, or legal advice the authoritative source is the Sentencing Council's own definitive guideline — including the category bands, step-by-step sentencing approach, and all statutory factors not captured here.

Open the full guideline on sentencingcouncil.org.uk

Source: Sentencing Council · Crown copyright, licensed under Open Government Licence v3.0. Summary fetched 2026-06-28. Not legal advice — see a regulated adviser for any live case.