Common Assault, ABH and GBH: UK Sentences Explained

Common assault carries a maximum of six months in prison in England and Wales, actual bodily harm (ABH) and unlawful wounding carry five years there but seven years in Northern Ireland, and grievous bodily harm (GBH) committed with intent carries a maximum of life imprisonment in England and Wales and Northern Ireland.

Assault sentencing runs on three separate legal systems across the United Kingdom. England and Wales share the Offences Against the Person Act 1861 with Northern Ireland, but Northern Ireland's versions of several sections carry different, higher maximum sentences, and common assault in Northern Ireland is still prosecuted under section 42 of the 1861 Act rather than the Criminal Justice Act 1988. Scotland does not use this statutory ladder at all; assault there is a common law offence, with no separate ABH or GBH statute.

Common Assault: The Baseline Offence

Common assault and battery in England and Wales are created by section 39 of the Criminal Justice Act 1988. They are summary only offences, meaning they can only be tried in the magistrates' court, and the maximum sentence is six months' imprisonment, or a fine, or both.

A separate provision, section 281(5) of the Criminal Justice Act 2003, would raise this maximum to 51 weeks if it were ever brought into force. It has never been commenced since the Act received Royal Assent, and no date for commencing it has been set. The true, current maximum for common assault remains six months, not 51 weeks, and any source stating 51 weeks as the current figure is describing an uncommenced provision.

An assault on an emergency worker is treated differently; see the emergency worker section below.

Actual Bodily Harm (ABH): Section 47

Assault occasioning actual bodily harm is created by section 47 of the Offences Against the Person Act 1861. It is an either way offence, meaning it can be tried in the magistrates' court or the Crown Court. In England and Wales the maximum sentence is five years' imprisonment. The harm does not need to be permanent or life threatening; the CPS's own charging guidance describes the threshold as harm that is more than transient and trifling.

Northern Ireland's maximum for the same offence is higher: seven years, not five. This follows a 2004 amendment to Northern Ireland's version of section 47. Northern Ireland's version of section 47 also contains its own separate on indictment tier for common assault, carrying up to two years, a tier that does not exist in the England and Wales version of the section.

Unlawful Wounding and GBH: Section 20

Section 20 of the 1861 Act creates the offence of unlawful wounding or inflicting grievous bodily harm. Grievous bodily harm means really serious harm; it does not need to be permanent or dangerous to life. Like ABH, this is an either way offence, and in England and Wales the maximum is five years' imprisonment.

Northern Ireland's maximum under its own version of section 20 is also seven years, not five, following the same 2004 amendment that raised the section 47 figure. The distinction between section 20 and section 18, described next, turns on intent, not on how serious the injury is.

GBH With Intent: Section 18

Section 18 of the 1861 Act is the most serious assault offence on the statute book. It requires an intention to cause grievous bodily harm, or an intention to resist or prevent arrest, rather than mere recklessness. It is an indictable only offence, meaning it can only be tried at the Crown Court, and it carries a maximum of life imprisonment, in both England and Wales and Northern Ireland.

Assault on an Emergency Worker

The Assaults on Emergency Workers (Offences) Act 2018 creates a more serious version of common assault when the victim is an emergency worker acting in that capacity. This turns what would otherwise be a summary only offence into an either way offence, with a maximum of two years' imprisonment on indictment. That two year figure was inserted by the Police, Crime, Sentencing and Courts Act 2022 and took effect on 28 June 2022; before that date the indictment maximum was twelve months.

Scotland runs a separate, standalone offence for this: the Emergency Workers (Scotland) Act 2005 makes it an offence to assault, obstruct or hinder an emergency worker in a protected role. Unlike the England and Wales version, Scotland's offence is summary only, with a maximum of twelve months' imprisonment; there is no indictment tier at all under that Act, although a serious assault on an emergency worker can still be prosecuted as common law assault, which is not limited to twelve months.

How Sentencing Council Guidelines Work in England and Wales

Once a court has convicted someone of common assault, ABH, or GBH with intent, it does not simply pick a number up to the statutory maximum. The Sentencing Council for England and Wales publishes definitive guidelines, effective from 1 July 2021, that structure the decision in two steps: first the court assesses culpability (factors such as use of a weapon, targeting a vulnerable victim, or planning), then it assesses harm (the injury actually caused and its context). Combining a culpability band with a harm category gives a starting point and a range.

For common assault, there are two culpability bands and three harm categories, and the resulting ranges run from a discharge up to 26 weeks in custody, comfortably inside the six month statutory ceiling above. For ABH, there are three culpability bands and three harm categories, and the top category range reaches up to four years in custody, below the five year statutory maximum. Section 18 GBH with intent uses its own, higher set of ranges reflecting the life maximum.

These guidelines are issued by the Sentencing Council for England and Wales, under its statutory basis in the Coroners and Justice Act 2009, and they do not apply in Scotland or Northern Ireland. For a worked example of how a court moves from an either way charge to a sentence, and how the magistrates' court and Crown Court divide that work, see Magistrates' Court vs Crown Court.

Scotland: Common Law Assault, No Statutory Ladder

Scotland does not have an equivalent to the Offences Against the Person Act 1861 or a statutory ABH or GBH offence. Assault in Scotland is a common law crime: any attack directed to take effect physically on another person, whether or not it actually causes injury. Scottish crime recording distinguishes Common Assault from Serious Assault by the injury caused, but both remain the same common law crime rather than separate statutory offences, and aggravating factors, such as a domestic abuse aggravation, are layered on top through separate legislation rather than creating a new named offence.

Because assault is a common law crime, the maximum depends on the court: 60 days in a Justice of the Peace court, 12 months in the sheriff court under summary procedure, five years in the sheriff court under solemn procedure, and up to life imprisonment in the High Court.

The Scottish Sentencing Council has confirmed there are no offence specific sentencing guidelines for assault in Scotland; the general sentencing process guideline applies instead.

Comparing the Maximums

Northern Ireland's own version of section 47 additionally creates an on indictment common assault tier carrying up to two years, separate from the ABH maximum in the same row. There is no dedicated 2023 Northern Ireland law that changed common assault penalties; the current Northern Ireland figures for sections 20 and 47 date to a 2004 order, not a 2023 change.

If You Are Facing an Assault Charge

This page explains the law and the sentencing framework; it does not predict what sentence a particular case will receive, since that depends on the specific facts, the culpability and harm factors above, and any plea. Free help is available before paying for it: everyone questioned or charged at a police station is entitled to a free duty solicitor, and criminal legal aid may cover representation afterwards; see legal aid eligibility. In Scotland, the Scottish Legal Aid Board administers equivalent support, and in Northern Ireland the Legal Services Agency does.

For the process before a charge is decided, see being arrested and the right to remain silent. Where a weapon is involved, see UK knife laws, and for a claimed defence to an assault charge, see self-defence and reasonable force. For the full offence catalogue and related guides, see the UK Criminal Law hub.

Frequently Asked Questions

What is the difference between common assault, ABH and GBH?

They sit on a ladder by injury and intent. Common assault under section 39 of the Criminal Justice Act 1988 needs no injury at all and carries a maximum of six months. Actual bodily harm under section 47 of the 1861 Act needs harm that is more than transient and trifling, with a five year maximum in England and Wales. Grievous bodily harm under section 20 needs really serious harm and carries the same five year maximum, while grievous bodily harm with intent under section 18 requires an intention to cause that serious harm and carries a maximum of life imprisonment.

What is the maximum sentence for ABH in the UK?

In England and Wales, the maximum sentence for actual bodily harm under section 47 of the Offences Against the Person Act 1861 is five years' imprisonment. In Northern Ireland, the maximum for the same offence is seven years, following a 2004 amendment to Northern Ireland's version of section 47.

Is grievous bodily harm always a life sentence?

No. Only grievous bodily harm committed with intent, under section 18 of the 1861 Act, carries a maximum of life imprisonment, and courts follow Sentencing Council guideline ranges that sit well below that ceiling in most cases. Grievous bodily harm without intent, under section 20, carries a maximum of five years in England and Wales and seven years in Northern Ireland.

Is common assault ever punished by more than six months in England and Wales?

Not for the base offence under section 39 of the Criminal Justice Act 1988, whose maximum remains six months. A provision in the Criminal Justice Act 2003 that would raise this to 51 weeks has never been brought into force. Assaulting an emergency worker is a separate, more serious offence with its own two year maximum on indictment.

Does Scotland use the same ABH and GBH offences as England and Wales?

No. Scotland has no statutory ABH or GBH ladder. Assault in Scotland is a common law crime, split into Common Assault and Serious Assault by the injury caused, with aggravating factors added by separate legislation rather than a separate named offence.

Are Northern Ireland's assault sentences the same as England and Wales'?

Not always. Section 18 GBH with intent carries a maximum of life imprisonment in both. But Northern Ireland's versions of section 20 (unlawful wounding or GBH) and section 47 (ABH) carry a maximum of seven years, not the five years that applies in England and Wales, following a 2004 amendment.