Female reoffending trajectories in England from 2000 to 2020: A longitudinal administrative data study

As females are a minority group in the criminal justice system, they have often been neglected in criminological research. Research exploring offending trajectories has largely focused on male and mixed-gender samples and studies using female-only cohorts have been constrained by small sample sizes, short follow-ups and limited evidence from England. However, as rates of female imprisonment increase, it is ever more important that we attempt to understand females’ engagement with the criminal justice system. This study used a linkage of the Police National Computer and the National Pupil Database to create a birth cohort of female offenders in England (N=196,089). The study explored their offending trajectories from the age of criminal responsibility (10 years) up to age 31 years. A latent class analysis identified a four-class model with the following classes: ‘Life-course-persistent’ (11%), ‘Adolescent-limited’ (54%), ‘Young-adult-limited’ (16%) and ‘Adult-onset’ (19%). These classes resemble those identified using male and mixed-gender samples. By identifying the key developmental patterns of female offending in England, this study provides an empirical basis for early identification and tailored support for those females most at risk of persistent offending.