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Fewer than three in 10 knife crime offenders in South Yorkshire were sentenced to prison last year, figures reveal.

Anti-knife crime charity the Ben Kinsella Trust said it is "extremely worrying" to see fewer criminals being sent to prison across England and Wales, despite a rise in knife crime.

Ministry of Justice figures show 475 knife and offensive weapon offenders were cautioned or convicted in South Yorkshire in the year to March with 140 (29 per cent) resulting in custody.

However, this was up from 27 per cent in 2020-21, but down from 38 per cent in 2019-20.

PICTURE POSED BY MODEL File photo dated 25/4/09 of a man in a hoodie holding a knife. The number of young offenders cautioned or sentenced after being caught with knives has hit the highest level for nearly eight years.

Last year, 13 per cent of offences resulted in a caution, 23 per cent in a community sentence, 25 per cent in suspended sentences and nine per cent in another disposal.

Across England and Wales, offenders receiving a custodial sentence for a knife and offensive weapon offence fell from 36 per cent in 2019-20, to just 29 per cent last year.

This comes despite a 2015 policy of “two strikes and you’re out” – where repeat offenders face a minimum six-month sentence for carrying a knife.

The Minstry of Justic figures show 19,555 knife crime offences nationwide resulted in a caution or conviction in 2021-22 which is below pre-pandemic levels, but a five per cent rise on the previous year.

As a result, the rate of offences rose from 35 per 100,000 people to 37 year-on-year.

MoJ statisticians said figures are impacted by the pandemic.

However, Patrick Green, chief executive of the Ben Kinsella Trust, said: "It is extremely worrying to see that knife crime offences are rising while fewer criminals are being sent to prison for their crimes.

"While Covid restrictions will have accounted for some of the variation, it is concerning to see that this trend has continued since restrictions were lifted.

"We need greater investment in the court process to reduce the length of time it takes for a case to get to court."

In South Yorkshire, the rate of knife offences was 42 per 100,000 people last year, up from 37 in 2020-21.

The average custodial sentence length nationally rose to 7.5 months in 2021-22.

The Government said the Police, Crime, Sentencing and Courts Act ensures violent offenders spend longer behind bars, new Home Office measures mean police can conduct more searches, and Serious Violence Reduction Orders allow police to target previous offenders.

Fewer than three in 10 knife crime offenders in South Yorkshire jailed

The Government said the Police, Crime, Sentencing and Courts Act ensures violent offenders spend longer behind bars, new Home Office measures mean police can conduct more searches, and Serious Violence Reduction Orders allow police to target previous offenders.